Denis Mortet, Clos Vougeot Grand Cru 2005

robert_parker90

Reviewed by: David Schildknecht

Mortet’s 2005 Clos Vougeot – from a single parcel below the Chateau de la Tour – smells of game and red meat and berries, offers encouraging fullness and sweetness of fruit on the palate but shows some overt oakiness and a bit less textural refinement than most of this year’s collection, and finishes with smoky, charred meat and caramelized fruit flavors. I detected a slight bit of heat, before being informed that this was the one wine in the group that reached 14% alcohol. Taking over this domaine in his mid-twenties, Arnaud Mortet appears poised to bottle a superb collection from his father’s final harvest. The crew took a brief second pass over certain parcels, he relates, and the bunches from some young vines required triage, but otherwise the fruit was perfect at first picking. Malolactic fermentations continued well into last autumn. Mortet emphasizes that he will continue a search for elegance and refinement begun in recent years, with a lighter touch during fermentation, and at least for vintage 2006 the employment of some previously-used barrels in order to de-emphasize wood at the modest end of his price spectrum. Importer: Martine’s Wines, Novato, CA; tel. (415) 883-0400.