One of the ripest wines in the cellar this year is the 2018 Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Cras, which comes in at fully 14% alcohol. Bursting with exuberant aromas of raspberries, cherries, pomegranate and rose petals, it's medium to full-bodied, velvety and enveloping, with a rich, textural palate that's deep and persuasively complete, concluding with a nicely integrated, mineral finish. For now, this is nicely integrated, but it will be interesting to revisit it from bottle.

The 2018 Chambolle-Musigny Les Cras 1er Cru has a lot of volatility on the nose that masks the terroir. It seems to address that with aeration, albeit remaining feisty. The palate is sweet and candid with "squishy" red fruit that lacks definition, the finish blurred and in want of more freshness. Hard-going on the dense finish that is missing tension and animation. There is much better in this appellation in 2018. Not sure how representative this bottle is. Tasted blind at the Burgfest 2018 red tasting.

1.75 ha (4.3 acres). Higher vineyard than most, facing south-east but cool air comes down the combe. Terres blanches, ie limestone-rich marl. Low-vigour vines here. Theirs were planted 1931, some replanted 2002. 60% whole bunch, 25% new oak. Barrel sample. Deep crimson. Fabulous nose of ripe red fruit with the perfume of peony. Perhaps also a touch of lavender from the whole bunch. Wild flowers and still so much fruit. Much tighter and more strict than Les Combottes, the tannins more upright and less smooth but still very very fine. More stony. 14.2% but you would not know. And that mineral freshness and energy is outstanding even if the wine is less approachable than some. Rich in fruit, mouth-watering in texture and that minerality gives a tight frame to the fruit. (JH)