The medium-to-dark ruby-colored 1996 Beaune Clos Des Mouches offers an austere nose of minerals and stones which gives way to a medium-to-full-bodied, strict, and structured character. Blackberries, gravel, and notes of underbrush can be discerned in this masculine wine. It does not have the joyful, plump, juicy, and bursting fruit characteristics of the vintage yet is well-crafted, balanced, and appealing in a severe sort of way. The score, on a range and in parentheses, indicates that the wine was tasted from barrel.Importer: Dreyfus Ashby, New York, NY; tel (212) 818-0770.