Gevrey Bel Air, Domaine Taupenot-Merme 2016

There is a mild hint of volatile acidity to the moderately reduced nose. I like the sense of energy to the beautifully delineated middle weight flavors that flash evident salinity on the mildly tangy finish. This is really quite dense and serious and the underlying material is present such that this may come together and my projected range makes this implicit assumption though I underscore that this is not a given.

The 2016 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Bel Air was affected by the frost, around 50% to 60% lost this vintage (equating to four barrels). It has quite a rich and expressive bouquet with touches of damson and sloes infusing the bright red berry fruit—vivacious and generous. The palate is sweet and fleshy on the entry, vibrant red fruit with fine tension and structure towards the finish. It does not possess the length of the best wines from Taupenot-Merme but it certainly has plenty of class and sappiness.