In my article on Ponsot's 1995s out of barrel, I heaped considerable praise on the Clos de la Roche Vieilles Vignes, describing it as "prodigious", and going so far as to say that "I would not be surprised if it deserved a perfect rating!" At my recent tasting I found it to be light-to-medium ruby-colored with an amber edge. Its slightly alcoholic nose is reminiscent of cherry-flavored Bubbleyum bubblegum mixed with white pepper and grapefruit. On the palate, this wine is a pale shadow of its former self. Amidst an earthy, stony, red pit fruit-flavored, and medium-bodied core, there remains a ghost-like trace of the richness and ripeness I originally had seen in this wine. After it had been opened for 48 hours I re-visited it. To its credit, this Clos de la Roche had not deteriorated, yet it had not gotten any better either. I will not be drinking my remaining bottles in the near term as I want to see if Laurent Ponsot's assertion that these wines will regain their fruit in time is correct. However, I cannot recommend the same course of action to readers as I see no reason to believe that cellaring will help this wine.
Importer: Vineyard Brands, Birmingham, AL; tel (205) 980-8802.
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