1995 Armand Rousseau Hospices Clos de la Roche

The medium-to-dark ruby-colored Clos De La Roche displays a deep nose of dark berries and meat and an explosive personality filled with cherries and blueberries. Surprisingly feminine for this vineyard, this chewy, medium-bodied, silky-textured wine will be at its best between 2000-2007. This note is the result of tastings I did in Burgundy between January 7 and January 29. The wine was tasted from cask, not bottle. Pinot Noir, a fragile varietal, reacts poorly to fining, filtration, and careless bottling techniques, I recommend caution when considering buying a red burgundy based on cask samples. I called it as I tasted it, and hope the bottled wine reflects the quality of the samples I was provided. Importer: Frederick Wildman, New York, NY; tel. (212) 355-0700

An explosive mix of both red and black fruit leads to supple, round, beautifully elegant flavors underpinned by ripe tannins, solid acidity and great balance plus excellent length. Rousseau did extremely well in this vintage and the '95 Clos de la Roche is a fine example. if it adds weight with a few years of bottle age, it may merit a higher rating still. Allen Meadows, Burghound Nov18,1997

The medium-to-dark ruby-colored Clos De La Roche displays a deep nose of dark berries and meat and an explosive personality filled with cherries and blueberries. Surprisingly feminine for this vineyard, this chewy, medium-bodied, silky-textured wine will be at its best between 2000-2007. This note is the result of tastings I did in Burgundy between January 7 and January 29. The wine was tasted from cask, not bottle. Pinot Noir, a fragile varietal, reacts poorly to fining, filtration, and careless bottling techniques, I recommend caution when considering buying a red burgundy based on cask samples. I called it as I tasted it, and hope the bottled wine reflects the quality of the samples I was provided. Pierre Rovani, Wine Advocate # 111