The Beaune Les Avaux is quite dark in 2012. Crushed rocks, iron, dark red berries and graphite are all very much alive in this tightly-coiled, intense Beaune. The 2012 is going to need at least a little time for the flavors to blossom. Today, it is the wine's intense salinity and chalky, grippy tannins that are most eivdent.

From their own parcel of 45-year-old vines, the 2012 Beaune 1er Cru Les Avaux has a pretty, serious bouquet that needs to let its hair down by the time of bottling. The tannins feel firm but not overbearing in the mouth and are nicely intertwined with the fresh, bright red cherry fruit. There is an elegance and charm to this Beaune wine and it will be well worth looking out for. Maison Camille Giroud is one of Burgundy’s stalwarts that can trace its roots back to 1886. I became acquainted with their wines in the 1990s and to be truthful they languished behind their peers: rather rustic fare that might have been acceptable in the 1970s, but not any longer. When a group of investors, including Ann Colgin and Joe Wender, bought Camille Giroud in 2002, they sought a young, talented winemaker to take the negociant by the scruff of the neck and kick-start a renaissance. That is exactly what happened when David Croix was hired as regisseur in 2005. Most of the fruit is contracted, though like Albert Bichot across the road, David prefers not to distinguish them from the two crus that are owned by the estate. David manages the vineyards and has summarized his policy: one contracted grower per cru in order to articulate a sense of place. “The wines from Camille Giroud tend to be more delicate than Domaine des Croix,” David explained, “and need less barrel aging. They tend to show red fruit, more cherries than my own wines.” In 2012, there are far fewer crus to choose from since yields were down 50% and some significant contracts, the likes of Latricieres-Chambertin and Corton Clos des Roi, were cancelled in their entirety since there was no fruit, which after all is helpful if you want to make wine. Still, what David Croix has managed to eke out from a challenging season is worth seeking out: refined and feminine wines that make up in freshness what might be missing in complexity. Plus they succeed in expressing their terroir as David always intends. Importer: Becky Wasserman Selections (Le Serbet) and through various US importers (see www.leserbet.com for full list.)