Here the mildly oaky nose is very pinot with ultra fresh and layered aromas that possess plenty of Gevrey character with their pungent earth and a hint of animale, both of which continue onto the rich, attractively precise and focused big-bodied flavors that are powerful and possess excellent volume, all wrapped in a wonderfully complex finish. Patience required.

Pure, bright fresh cherry on the nose of Claude Dugat’s 2008 Charmes Chambertin is accompanied to the palate by a suffusion of chalk, forest floor aura, and invigoratingly salinity. This long, lean, refreshing expression of its vintage gains a sense of red meat juices and takes on ever-sweeter fruit expression as it opens to the air. Oscillating interactions of its multiple layers serve for finishing fascination, while its generous fresh fruit never flags and its underlying tannins boast real refinement. I would look for 12-15 years of satisfying stimulation here. -David Schildknecht