2017 Joseph Drouhin, Nuits-Saint-Georges Premier Cru, Les Proces

The 2017 Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Les Procès offers up an expressive and fruit-driven bouquet of cherries, cassis, raspberries and spices, followed by a medium to full-bodied, ample and exuberant palate with a voluminous core of fruit that largely conceals its firm, stony structuring tannins. Its charm and generosity make it one of the high points of the range this year.

The 2017 Nuits Saint-Georges Les Procès 1er Cru felt a little gawky on the nose when I tasted the cask sample. The palate is medium-bodied with a pleasant sharpness on the entry, delivering firm grip and a saline finish that lingers in the mouth. Give this a couple of years in bottle.

Cask sample. Mid cherry red. Lovely delicate but lifted fragrance, so inviting. Utterly mouth-watering and scented on the palate. Fine-boned and overflowing with fine fruit flavour. Gently chewy texture and still so elegant. So long. (JH)