Bittersweet in its evocations of cooked black raspberry, medicinal-herbal, and cyanic cherry pit, the Drouhin 2007 Beaune Greves displays ample richness and freshness on the palate, albeit along with slightly gum-numbing tannins which, when taken with the naturally stony proclivities of the site, heads the wine’s finish in a slightly less generous direction than what went before led me to expect. Still, this is a handsome Pinot, and the question is to what degree one might be rewarded by aging it. I would be very watchful and anticipate at most a half dozen years of interesting evolution. “2008 was very slow in doing its malolactic – which was good, and ended up with a pretty lively impression of acidity” remarked Veronique Boss-Drouhin, “and I think the wines will be slow to evolve in bottle, as well.” Numerous cuvees were still in tank or barrel when I visited in March, which constitutes an unusually late schedule at this address. The 2007s, by contrast, were bottled even earlier than normal, most at age 12 months. In 2008, a 15-25% share of stems and whole clusters was included in the fermenting vat for the Clos des Mouches and for most of the Drouhin grand crus, whereas in 2007 that degree of vendange entier was practically the rule across the entire Drouhin range (by no means all of which I tasted). Importer: Dreyfus-Ashby & Co., New York, NY; tel. (212) 818-0770

A deliciously soft, smoky wine, the tannins a hint behind the rounded fresh berry and red-plum fruits. There is a great juicy character to go with the fresh acidity and the final, drier structure. ——R.V.(12/31/2010)—— 91