The Jadot 2005 Echezeaux is sweetly-scented with cherry, cranberry, honey and black tea. Lithe and juicy, sweetly-fruited and pure, this illustrates the missions of elegance, elevation and refinement accruing to grand cru, finishing with bright, salt-tinged fruit wreathed in floral and tea-like perfume. One can only wonder whether a darker or more carnal side – or tannins that are presently not in evidence – will assert themselves with time. This was especially slow to finish malo, and Lardiere insists it is not showing its full potential today, expecting to bottle it later than most of the other wines as well. Jacques Lardiere has once again presided over a collection for the most part not intended to flatter in its youth, but rather to achieve an eventual balance of fruit acidity with (in this instance frequently quite prominent) tannin. Prolonged post-fermentative extraction promoted a formidably-structured group of wines, which Lardiere expressed no hurry about bottling. Certain of these – particularly from the Cote de Beaune – displayed a slightly drying finishing astringency or simply an austere lack of charm to match their concentration, traits Lardiere suggested might be traceable to drought stress in those sites. A brief July rain that reached the Cote de Nuits but not the Cote de Beaune was critical, he asserts, and all of Jadot’s vines in the northern Cote were picked before the harvest in the south commenced. (Wines from the Domaine Louis Jadot, Domaine Heritiers Louis Jadot, or Domaine Gagey, have been identified with a letter “D” in their listings.) Also recommended: 2005 Cote de Nuits-Villages Le Vaucrain ($25.00;86+?), 2005 Santenay Clos de Malte ($27.00; 85-87), 2005 Savigny-les-Beaune Aux Guettes (84-86+?), 2005 Nuits-St.-Georges ($37.00; 85-87+?), 2005 Chambolle-Musigny ($50.00; 85-87+?). Importer: Kobrand, Inc., New York, NY; tel.(212) 490 9300

Good ruby-red. Blacker fruits on the nose than the Echezeaux, with notes of mocha and tar. Suave and sweet, with bright acidity and underlying minerality giving shape to the broad chocolate and dark fruit flavors. Finishes with a note of licorice. Lardiere says this is less massive than the Echezeaux, but at the moment it shows considerable power and a lush texture.

Wine Advocate June, 2007 The 2005 Grands-Echezeaux offers tart, slightly bitter black raspberry fruit, deep meatiness and a marrow-like richness, a creamy texture almost paradoxically accompanying persistent, invigorating brightness of fresh fruit, and a long, intense finish that preserves the refinement present in the Echezeaux but adds weight. This is another instance of sublimated tannins, although my intuition is that there is no lack of structure buried beneath the surface and that a decade or more of cellaring would be warranted.