1999 Domaine Sylvie Esmonin Gevrey-Chambertin Clos Saint-Jacques 1er Cru

(100% destemmed, as Sylvie Esmonin's first experiment with vendange entier was in 2000): Bright, moderately saturated red with no sign of amber. Sexy, lively scents of black raspberry, redder fruits, espresso and chocolate. Plush, fine-grained and surprisingly dry, offering bright flavors of redcurrant, plum and mocha. Not hugely expansive for the vintage, but its restrained sweetness is nicely buffered by harmonious acidity. Finishes slightly warm, with dusty tannins and slowly building spicy length. This is more likely to get drier with more time in bottle than sweeter or fatter. Today's wines are at once more gripping, thanks to whole-cluster fermentation and riper and more expansive. But Sylvie Esmonin noted that the fruit in 1999 was picked fairly late.

The 1999 Clos Saint Jacques from Sylvie Esmonin has a sublime bouquet with wonderful tension and focus, surprisingly youthful with dark cherries, balsamic and a touch of sous-bois. The palate is vibrant with good substance in the mouth. It displays palpable spiciness with an elevated, vivacious finish. There is a bullishness and sense of brio about this Clos Saint Jacques that should continue to give pleasure over the next ten years. Tasted January 2014.

Moderately saturated bright ruby. Inviting aromas of raspberry, cherry and bacon fat. Thick with extract, but fresh and penetrating; this is simultaneously rich and austere, in the style of the best examples from this superb premier cru vineyard. Finishes subtle and long, with very fine tannins. The crop level was 45 hectoliters per hectare in '99, according to Sylvie.