2009 Domaine Bernard Baudry Chinon La Croix Boisse

From chalk-clay over mother chalk on the high escarpment above Cravant, Baudrys’ 2009 Chinon La Croix Boissee was tasted from barrel and will not be bottled until shortly before the 2011 harvest. Fresh blackberry touched by brown spices and toasted nuts are allied to deep, marrow-rich meat stock and humus, forest floor notes. Almost like a picture of its site, this exhibits an early incipient sense of creaminess, yet also a firm sense of fine tannin and pure chalky suffusion, and its bright saline and berry skin notes serve for ample invigoration. This is sure to be profound as a finished wine worth following for at least 15 years, though it will of course evolve significantly between now and bottling. For notes on Bernard and Matthieu Baudry’s outstanding latest whites, consult my parallel report on “Central Loire Chenin.” They took their time waiting for what they deemed the optimum moment for picking in 2009 – even if any moment would have been outstanding by long-term standards! – but then brought in their entire crop in six days. Importers: Louis/Dressner Selections, New York, NY; tel. (212) 334 8191 and Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant, Berkeley, CA; tel. (510) 524-1524