2006 Latricieres-Chambertin

According to winemaker David Croix, there was a significant difference between the Cote de Beaune and the Cote de Nuits in 2006 "in terms of fruit and depth." One key factor was the precipitation totals during the summer, he explained, noting that Beaune received 100 millimeters of rain in August, while Nuits-Saint-Georges had just half that amount. Croix made the decision to move the young 2006s to tank, still with some lees, earlier than usual to preserve "the purity of the vintage" (some wines went into tank in July and a few the week before my visit). "They did not have enough structure or depth for us to keep them in barrels," he explained. "We didn't want to dry the wines, and so we kept a lot of CO2 and did a very gentle racking with minimal oxidative influence." Incidentally, the plan here is to air-condition the cellar in time for the 2008 harvest. As I have encountered unfinished wines here that seemed a bit dry or advanced for their age, this step would appear to be very constructive. (A Becky Wasserman selection; importers include Willette Wines, New York, NY and Veritas Imports, Beverly Hills, CA)