From their hectare in that cru, the Drouhin 2006 Beaune Greves reflects the purity of fruit as well as the charm for which the Drouhins and their winemaker strove, and which was especially challenging to achieve this year in the Cote de Beaune. (What's more, the vines here are a 25-year old clonal cocktail – not the most promising of sources, you might think.) Ripe cherry and plum tinged with brown spices and inner mouth floral perfume are underlain by chalk and stone inform a creamily-textured palate, and this finishes with length, lift, refreshment, and poise. I would plan to enjoy this over the next 4-5 years. "I was skeptical when the harvest came," says Philippe Drouhin about 2006, "because the weather had been so hectic; we had to sort the grapes; and it was not as nice as '05. But the more I tasted the '06s in the course of the year, the more I liked them." Winemaker Jerome Faure-Brac says he was hyper-cautious about avoiding the extraction of bitterness or under-ripeness, and employed vendange entier (whole clusters with stems) on a significant share of the grands (and top premiers) crus, but only in conjunction with rigorous table-sorting. Most came in at 13-13.5% potential alcohol. The wines were bottled about as early as they ever have been at Drouhin, to preserve and avoid drying out the fruit. (Just as elsewhere in this report, I have frequently indicated in my tasting note whether the source of grapes is the family's domaine or contract fruit, but have not attempted to reflect this as part of the descriptions used to identify the wines.) Importer: Dreyfus-Ashby & Co., New York, NY; tel. (212) 818-0770

In the soft, ripe style that is so characteristic of Beaune, this is a wine with sweet berries; this soft, jammy exterior is supported by structured tannins that make their presence felt under the fruit. Although it is delicious already, it could benefit from 3–4 years’ aging. ——R.V.(10/1/2009)—— 90