2005 Domaine Dujac Chambolle-Musigny Les Gruenchers 1er Cru

Bright crimson. Scented and very vivacious (see the same attack chez Fourrier). Full and sumptuous on the palate with so much ripe fruit that the extremely fine tannins are almost completely hidden. Long, perfumed, tastes almost like a crème-de-cassis liqueur – that sort of sweet intensity. (JR)

The Dujac 2005 Chambolle-Musigny Les Gruenchers displays ripe black cherry and tart rhubarb with oaky overlays of vanilla, coconut and lanolin. In the mouth too, concentrated black cherry and rhubarb are inflected – arguably a bit deflected – by flavors of new wood, but red blood meatiness and attractive inner-mouth florality assert themselves and this displays admirably fine-grained tannins and emerging creaminess, finishing with palate-staining richness of fruit. The already rich array of crus at Domaine Dujac has recently been augmented on two fronts. The purchase (along with de Montille) of the Societe Civile du Clos de Thorey (Thomas-Moillard) has brought them a raft of choice parcels including three new grand cru holdings (for a staggering total of eight). Meanwhile, they have expanded their negociant arm (with control over harvest and green harvest a prerequisite) to supplement in particular their volumes of village-level wine. (Those wines – labeled “Dujac Fils & Pere” – are signified in the above listing with “FP”. In fact, due to a legal technicality, the 2005 vintage wines from the properties newly acquired by the domaine – but not subsequent vintages – will also read “Fils & Pere” rather than “Domaine”.) Even with California-trained oenologist Diana Seysses (nee Snowden) joining her husband Jeremy and in-laws Jacques and Alec, and with a new winery (though at the old address) I wonder at how they are able to keep up with the magnitude of their responsibilities. Yet despite so many parcels and vines new to them this year, the results are consistently outstanding and at times astounding. Much of the vinification – increasingly as one goes up the hierarchy of crus – was of whole clusters. Malos finished (finally) by November and the wines were bottle in December and January. Importer: The Sorting Table, Napa, CA; tel.(415) 491 4724