2013 Perrot-Minot, Vosne-Romanee Premier Cru, Les Beaux Monts Vieilles Vignes

Wiry, tense and energetic, the 2013 Vosne-Romanée Les Beaux Monts is highly representative of the year. Dark red and purplish-hued fruit, cherry pit, flowers mint and crushed rocks open up in the glass, but today, the 2013 is mostly about texture. The precise, floral, lifted style is hugely appealing, although the wine is going to need at least a few years in bottle to fully come together. Distinct notes of stoniness linger on the close.

(from the rocky part of the cru, according to Perrot-Minot): Bright, dark red. Raspberry, mocha and gunflint on the nose, complicated by licorice and spices. Concentrated and sappy, showing more density and depth--if less early finesse--than the Fuées. I like this wine's combination of sweetness and spiciness. Finishes with a piquant suggestion of pomegranate.