2019 Domaine Denis Bachelet, Gevrey-Chambertin, Vieilles Vignes

The 2019 Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes contains what fruit was eked out from Evocelles this year. It has a clean, precise bouquet of black cherries, iodine, violet and light sous-bois aromas that soar from the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with a granular texture, impressive weight and disarming elegance and harmony on the finish. Try finding a better Village Cru than this in 2019... you won’t.

In this low-yielding vintage, Bachelet elected to include his grapes from prime lieu-dit Evocelles in his 2019 Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes, and the result is a predictably superb wine. Wafting from the glass with notes of dark cherries, cassis, baking chocolate, warm spices, peonies and mandarin rind, it's medium to full-bodied, bright and concentrated, with lively acids, ultra-refined tannins and a long, resonant finish. This will be worth a special effort to seek out.

85- to 90-year-old vines. 1.5 ha total. Six or seven parcels. Cask sample. A wild note on the nose. Sweet and perfumed. Very charming even if without the grunt of many a Gevrey. Contains the low-yielding fruit from Les Evocelles that he used to bottle separately. (JR)