Following a legendary performance can be a daunting and, often, less than memorable experience. The same can be said of wine vintages; some very good vintages are lost in the shadow of truly exceptional ones. All the better for the savvy wine buyer. In the most challenging vintage, the exceptional winemakers turn out some outstanding wines. This is the case with 2006 Burgundies where, as usual, the best and most thorough producers made lovely wines. More typical than 2005, 2006 produced wines of spectacular quality and clarity, wines that allow the terroir to show through. Pristine wines of marvelous purity and grace, they will be a joy to drink while you are waiting for your 2005s to be ready.
As Alain Burguet sums up, “In terms of the wines, it's an elegant and refined vintage that is about pleasure but pleasure in the classic Burgundian model of finesse and purity. I very much like the wines and after the intensity and power of the '05s, they provide a nice contrast."
This glorious Saint Veran offers up an intense and complex combination of stonefruits and white flower aromas. Generous palate, rounded and balanced with a long, crisp and minerally finish.
Jean-Pierre & Michel Auvigue are third generation proprietors at Le Moulin du Pont. Robert Parker Jr. notes that: “Their wines…are among the top half-dozen wines produced in the region… they are favorites at such important restaurants in France as La Mère Blanc in Vonnas, as well as Lasserre and Maxim's in Paris.”
Buy this and drink it today. Then come back and buy a case. This is just SPECTACULAR! Great fruit and balance with ample structure and a beguiling nose.
Pale yellow. Racy citrus and Anjou pear aromas are complicated by anise and pungent herbs. Clean, brisk and sharply focused, with good mineral bite and impressively deep orchard fruit flavors. Finishes firm, with dried pear and quince qualities echoing.
“[We] specifically recommend the Pouilly-Fuissés of Auvigue, for those who've given up on the idea that Pouilly-Fuissé could be special.” (David Lawrason, Wine Access).
Lemon gold in color, with a rich, honeyed nose. It shows apple and citrus fruit on the palate with vanilla and good balanced acidity with tremendous finesse and longevity.
Enticing aromas of citrus and mint. Juicy and easygoing; this opens up nicely with a lovely inner-palate fruit of citrus and pineapple fruit. It is an elegant, lacy wine that remains quite supple despite its firm mineral spine. And at this price it's a steal!
A fresh, ripe and only moderately rustic nose displays dark berry fruit, moderate earth and hints of violets and underbrush notes that merge into rich, sweet and nicely voluminous flavors that are delicious, serious and punchy on the firm finish though again, I suspect that this will round out nicely after 5 years or so in bottle. Allen Meadows-Burghound
A supremely light and elegant Pinot Noir with ethereal aromas of ripe berries and fresh earth with unusually refined flavors for this appellation. Terrific!
An expressive and relatively airy red pinot fruit nose leads to rich, sweet and punchy flavors that possess good depth and length. This is unusually good for its level .
This is also unusually pretty and very pinot yet with the expected undertones of Gevrey character that are also picked up by the elegant, precise and pure middle weight flavors that possess good energy and punch.Allen Meadows - Burghound
This is carrying much more generous wood than the Gevrey though it does not dominate the pretty red berry fruit that is very pinot in character and the wood also surfaces on the round and firm middle weight flavors supported by a persistent finish that possesses a bit more depth if less length. A qualitative choice but for those who enjoy villages level wines with plenty of Nuits character, this would be a good, if slightly oaky, choice. Allen Meadows-Burghound
John Gilman (View From the Cellar): "The Place des Lois bottling is made up of a blend of lieux à dits that include Reniard and Billards, and it is excellent in 2006. The complex bouquet is deep, lovely and quite old viney in its blend of black cherries, plums, raw cocoa, grilled meats, fine minerality, fresh herbs and a touch of cedary wood. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, long and nicely structured, with ripe tannins, fine focus and mid-palate depth and a long, tangy and complex finish. A very classy AC. Allen Meadows -Burghound
An airy, pure and refined nose of dried white flower, lemon rind and a hint of quinine merge into round yet detailed and precise flavors trimmed in a very deft touch of wood that culminates in an admirably long finish. This is an understated and relatively forward effort that will have the advantage of being approachable young but aging well over the medium term. Allen Meadows-Burghound
Here, there is a bit more evident wood, which sets off exotic fruit, airy white flower and the classic citrus aromas where the latter component can also be found on the rich, full and very fresh and vibrant flavors that both stain and coat the palate on the intensely mineral finish. A striking effort with excellent potential to improve out to a decade. Don't Miss Allen Meadows - Burghound
This is ripe yet cool and reserved with a nose that displays orchard fruit and citrus blossom that complement slightly rounder and richer flavors that possess depth on the dusty, chalky textured finish.
This is as distinctively Chambolle in character as the preceding Gevrey-based wines are Gevrey with its elegant, pure and airy red berry fruit aromas and round, supple, delicious and precise flavors that pack good punch, persistence and depth for its level. In a word, lovely.
This possesses the most complete nose to this point and is classic Gevrey in character with big-boned and firmly structured flavors that display the expected earthiness and animale but also with sweetness and precision on the energetic and highly complex finish. The old vine sap and intensity really shine through in a transparent vintage like '06 and this is impressive for its level. Outstanding!. Allen Meadows - Burghound
