2014 Bouchard Père & Fils Beaune Les Greves Vigne de l'Enfant Jesus 1er Cru

Bright medium red. Pungent, slightly sauvage aromas of raspberry, strawberry liqueur, wild herbs, cinnamon and leather. Supple and fine-grained but a bit unforthcoming in the early going, with its cherry-berry, wild herb and spice flavors currently shortened a bit on the back by a serious dusting of tannins. This very dry wine has the acids and tannins for mid-term aging but lacks give and generosity today. Perhaps a bit dried by its oak element. (An earlier bottle sampled at Bouchard in November was more meaty and funky.)

40% new oak. Winemaker Frederic Weber reports that the low juice-to-skin ratio on the Côte de Beaune was challenging – and only around 15% whole bunch here (compared with the more usual 40% on the Côte de Nuits). He also transferred all the new oak lots into old oak before the 2015 harvest. Mid ruby (definitely lighter and less blue than the Monthelie Duresses). Very distinctive nose. Are BP&F using a new cooper? (More Chassin and less toast, apparently – like so many.) Relatively lightweight and a bit light on charm and fruit. Seems to be an attempt to fight the vintage instead of producing charming, relatively low-tannin wines. Still a bit raw but without great fruit and extract. (JR)

(in tank; just 25 hectoliters per hectare produced): Bright, deep red-ruby. Pure but subdued aromas of black plum, licorice, leather, mocha and tobacco. Suave and fine-grained, showing subtle sweetness but also lovely medicinal reserve to the flavors of plum, dark berries, mineral salts, clove and mocha. This dense, rich, ageworthy wine finishes with serious but refined tannins and very good savory persistence. The bottom part of this vineyard, which normally makes a suppler style of wine and is therefore vinified with a good percentage of whole clusters, was largely spared by hail in 2014.