Domaine des Lambrays, Clos des Lambrays Grand Cru 2006

robert_parker90

Reviewed by: Neal Martin

Tasted at Goedhuis’s Burgundy tasting at the Saatchi Gallery. The 2006 Clos des Lambrays has an elegant bouquet, very pure with light strawberry, raspberry leaf, orange zest and a hint of leather. Good delineation, although not great vigour or fruit concentration. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly “furry” tannin, notes of redcurrant and strawberry but then clamming in on itself towards the more structured, and slightly sulky finish. I would afford this a couple more years in the cellar or at least generous decanting, as this is a bashful Clos des Lambrays that needs to acclimatise to the life after bottle. Drink 2012-2020. Tasted March 2010.

robert_parker91

Reviewed by: Neal Martin

It has been two or three years since I last tasted the Clos des Lambrays 2006 from Domaine des Lambrays. It continues to exhibit a refined bouquet of light red cherries and strawberry, hints of undergrowth and dried autumn leaves. The palate is not as complex as either the 2009 or 2010 tasted alongside, but there is plenty of natural red, leafy fruit and a light, approachable finish that just glides across the mouth with little interest in leaving a long lasting impression. Perhaps a more ephemeral Clos des Lambrays, I would nonetheless take pleasure in opening bottles over the next ten years. Tasted March 2013.

robert_parker94

Reviewed by: David Schildknecht

The 2006 Clos des Lambrays is darkly-shaded in aromatics to match its darker color vis-a-vis its two littler siblings. Ripe plum and blackberry, burley tobacco, resin, and tar in the nose are transported to a palate that shares the sappy intensity, cling, and invigoration – via tart, spicy and tactile mineral impingement – that are common to this year's Domaine des Lambrays trio. Here, hints of violet perfume and a lurking sense of gaminess add mystery. Black pepper, cardamom, berry skins, chalk, salt, and resin are featured in a tenacious finish of vibratory energy. The longer this was open to the air, the more it fascinated. I see no reason to defer the pleasures of its company now, but would expect it to be well worth following for 10-12 years. In retrospect, this seems to me the unequivocal statement of grand cru depth and complexity that I have been seeking without complete satisfaction in so many previous vintages of Clos des Lambrays. Thierry Brouin began harvesting ahead of the ban de vendange, yet felt that the stems were sufficiently ripe to retain, which – together with reliance on unbroken clusters – is his preferred means of controlling fermentative extraction. Brouin's haste, though, was also driven by a pressing concern. "We don't do any spraying against botrytis," he explains, "and in the beginning of September we had a lot of mild rain, and rot … whoosh! So we had to do a really strict selection and lost one-third of a normal yield." In light of Brouin's explanations, I was not expected what appeared in the glass: wines that easily more than stand qualitative comparison with his 2005s, and furthermore are a lot more fun to drink. Importer: Weygandt-Metzler, Unionville, PA; tel. (610) 486-0800