Bouchard Pere & Fils, La Romanee Grand Cru 2005

vinous97

Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer

Bright, saturated ruby-red. Pungent minerals, licorice and cocoa powder on the nose. Lush and seamless but with extremely primary flavors of crushed berries, bitter chocolate, minerals and leather. Wonderfully rich but at the same time precise and vibrant. Finishes with a palate-staining whiplash of dark berry flavor. Tannins are quite fine, but this very tight, backward wine is going to require a decade or more in the cellar.

robert_parker90

Reviewed by: Neal Martin

Tasted at the La Romanée vertical at Domaine du Comte Liger-Belair. The 2005 La Romanée Grand Cru from Bouchard Père & Fils does not have the refinement and delineation of the 2006, more forward but not as nuanced. The palate is medium-bodied, quite rounded and supple with good weight in the mouth, but it must be said that compared to the Liger-Belair bottling there is clearly not the same complexity and tension, you could almost say more commercial. That might appeal to some people, but perhaps that should not be the case at this level and price point. Tasted June 2015.