2006 Jacques-Federic Mugnier Clos de la Marechale Premier Cru

A somber but really very pretty nose combines soft spice elements with those of earth, plum and violet. There is impressive richness, volume and copious dry extract to the medium-bodied flavors that are still firm and serious yet the grippy finish is not especially austere or rigid. In particular I like the complexity here and while 2006 is not an elegant vintage for this wine, it still delivers excellent quality plus there is more development to come for those who have the patience.

Representing the third Mugnier estate-bottling of this monopole (long leased to Faiveley), the 2006 Nuits-St.-Georges Clos De La Marechale boasts deep, sweet black raspberry and dark cherry fruit tinged with vanilla; a plusher texture and at the same time greater clarity to nuances of peat, crushed stone, fruit pit, and mineral salts than exhibited by the 2005; and a long, soothing, yet refreshing finish. I suspect this will be worth following for the better part of a decade. It received 20% new wood, incidentally, no differently from Mugnier's other (including his grand-) crus. He vinified nine separate lots from this site's more than 20 acres, culling a portion (mostly from young vines) during the final assemblage to inform a second wine, which I have not tasted. When asked what he had done differently in 2006 when compared with 2005, Frederic Mugnier replied, "Nothing. I want the character of the vintage to be reflected in the wine as much as the terroir, so I try to hold everything else as constant as possible." While that statement might reflect a bit of hyperbole, it's hard to argue with a collection like Mugnier's 2006s, its wines reflective of their vintage, yet the best of them not really dramatically different from their 2005 counterparts. Certainly they are no less profoundly delicious, and will give more pleasure sooner. (For some details on Mugnier methodology, consult my report in issue 170.) Picking began here ahead of the ban de vendange, "at absolutely the same levels of sugar as in 2005" – meaning at 12.75-14% potential alcohol – although Mugnier hastens to note that it was only well along in the evolution of this collection – and to his surprise – that its ability to hold its own qualitatively with some of the great vintages at his estate became evident. "There wasn't much hail," he relates, "and only in a few sectors did we have to perform serious triage," which chez Mugnier – as at Rousseau – means in the vineyard, not on sorting tables. A Becky Wasserman Selection, Le Serbet; fax 011-333-80-24-29-70