2005 Domaine Robert Arnoux Vosne-Romanée Les Suchots 1er Cru

Bright ruby-red. Pure, discreet aromas of black raspberry, spices, minerals and coffee; Lachaux says this is closed today but I find its subtle perfume utterly seductive. Wonderfully sweet and dense, with a seamless texture and no impression of weight. Extraordinarily sappy and aromatic for the vintage. The building, expanding finish features substantial sweet tannins and a dusty, tactile impression of extract-not to mention outstanding aromatic persistence.

Well integrated if not invisible wood influence frames sexy, elegant and pure black berry fruit aromas that slide into beautifully balanced and naturally sweet flavors that have superb depth of material, particularly on the silky, even velvety finish. This is quite a seductive wine with almost invisible structure as the pinot baby fat completely buffers it on the wonderfully persistent and mouth coating finish. An impressive effort with outstanding balance and I very much like the structural harmony here, which should permit the '05 Suchots to age effortlessly. A terrific effort.

Good bright ruby-red. A note of cassis reduction plus captivating scents of dark raspberry, blood orange and violet. Wonderfully suave and fine-grained, with a deep, sappy sweetness and terrific lift to the flavors of raspberry, flowers and Oriental spices. Sexy, spicy oak adds to the wine's appeal. Very long and fine on the back, with perfectly buffered but firm tannins.