The 2018 Clos des Lambrays Grand Cru does not quite have the amplitude of Magnien's Clos Saint-Denis, but it displays more vivacious red fruit, clarifying with aeration and eventually develops quite an ethereal quality. The palate is beautifully balanced with sappy red fruit laced with white pepper, sage and graphite notes. Superb structure on the finish - quintessentially Morey-Saint-Denis with wonderful sappiness. Bon vin! Tasted blind at the Burgfest 2018 red tasting.

After its fine showing from barrel, the 2018 Clos des Lambrays Grand Cru hasn't quite realized all its promise. Offering up aromas of ripe cherries, berries, spices and orange rind, it's more obviously marked by cedary new oak than I perceived a year ago, and rustic aromas of smoked meats and fresh leather now mingle with its inviting fruit tones. Full-bodied, rich and layered, it concludes with a youthfully chewy, oak lactone-inflected finish.

60 m difference in height between the top and the bottom of the Clos. 80% whole bunch and 50% new barrels. Barrel sample. Deeply coloured. Perfumed and dark and rocky on the nose. A hint of pepper but the most elegant, restrained dark-red fruit. Just a touch of oak spice. Savoury spice not sweet spice. Incredibly tender tannins. They did three punchdowns a day but did not push down to the bottom of the tank. There’s power in the mid palate but it is delicate on the finish, such tannic finesse that you almost miss the power of the vintage. Darkness to the fruit shows the ripeness. Very very long and so elegant already. Oak eaten by the fruit. A definite mineral/pepper layer adds to the freshness. Mouth-watering even if the acidity is only moderate (pH 3.65). Well balanced at 13.7%. (JH)