2010 Louis Jadot Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru

The 2010 Mazis-Chambertin is strikingly beautiful. There is just one barrel of the Mazis resting in the Jadot cellar, and this is a new barrel, so the aromas and flavors haven’t begun to emerge just yet. Still, it is impossible to miss the sheer elegance and finesse of the tannin, as well as the wine’s exceptional overall balance. A fine, nuanced finish laced with the sweetest red berries and rose petals leaves the last impression. This is a fabulous showing. Anticipated maturity: 2025-2040. I tasted an amazing range of 2010 reds at Jadot with long-term winemaker Jacques Lardiere and his successor Frederic Barnier. In order to make this large section of the report easier to read, I have broken up the wines into the Cote de Beaune and Cote de Nuits. Lardiere and Barnier told me they were quite worried about the prospects for the harvest upon their return from summer vacations in August, but the year was saved by a perfect September. Yields are down 25-50% because of the frost and cold weather earlier in the year, but overall quality is very high. Lardiere and Barnier also noted that early on it appeared that there would be a wide gap in quality between the Cote de Beaune and the Cote de Nuits, but over time that gap narrowed to some extent. Still, there is little question the vintage was more challenging in the Cote de Beaune because of a rainier summer and overall higher precipitation throughout the year. Importer: Kobrand Corp., Purchase, NY; tel. (914) 253-7756