Tasting Notes
Vinous 96
Deep red-ruby, the darkest of these ’95s. Knockout aromas of black raspberry, chocolate, espresso and exotic spices. Incredible inner-mouth mineral and berry flavors. Spicy, delineated and truly palate-staining. Has a structure that reminded me of Cabernet Sauvignon. Explosive finish, with tannins that coat the palate, teeth, furniture. Showing much better than the ’93 did at the same stage.
Wine Advocate 95
One of the greatest wines of the vintage, Vogue’s Musigny Vieilles Vignes, reminded me of Chateau Margaux at its best: an iron fist in a velvet glove. How anything can be this massive, powerful, and robust and yet be strikingly elegant and refined. Possessing a dark ruby color and an amazingly spicy, floral (roses) and black fruit-filled nose, this stupendous Burgundy has a thick, almost viscous, velvety texture, with copious quantities of fat, chewy, red berries. Surprisingly, the fruit almost tastes stewed yet is perfectly and clearly delineated. Complex, intensely deep and buttressed with huge but ripe tannins, this wine should be at its plateau of maturity between 2006 and 2016. Bravo!
This note is the result of tastings I did in Burgundy between January 7 and January 29. The wine was tasted from cask, not bottle. Pinot Noir, a fragile varietal, reacts poorly to fining, filtration, and careless bottling techniques, I recommend caution when considering buying a red burgundy based on cask samples. I called it as I tasted it, and hope the bottled wine reflects the quality of the samples I was provided.
Anticipated maturity: 2006-2016
