1999 Domaine des Lambrays, Clos des Lambrays Grand Cru 1x750ml

Vinous 92

Very ripe aromas of dark fruits, cinders, spices and earth, along with strong torrefaction notes of coffee and mocha; there’s something here that’s dulling the fruit. More pristine in the mouth than on the nose, but showing obvious evolution to its flavors of black fruits, iron and brown spices. Plenty of thickness here but lacks the peppery clarity of the 2001. Finishes with robust, rather dusty tannins. This is considerably less impressive and more evolved than a brilliant bottle I tried last winter for my 1999 horizontal, perhaps owing to a touch of brett, which has compromised the wine’s inner-mouth tension and minerality. (13.9% alcohol; 3.54 pH; 3.4 g/l acidity; the crop level even after a green harvest was 45 hectoliters per hectare, which Thierry Brouin said was the highest during his time at Domaine des Lambrays) [Stephen Tanzer, 03/04/2019]

Anticipated maturity: 2019-2027

Robert Parker 90

The dark ruby-colored 1999 Clos Des Lambrays exhibits blackberry, cassis, blood orange, and spice aromas. It is medium-bodied, with a well-made candle wax, blackberry, cassis, and hoisin sauce-flavored personality. This spicy, extroverted wine is velvety-textured and appealing. Grand crus of the Cote de Nuits were entitled to 46 hectoliters per hectare yields (including the PLC) and the Domaine des Lambrays produced 45.5 hectoliters per hectare. My impression is that they would have achieved a more concentrated, deeper, and longer finishing wine if their yields had been more moderate. Drink this wine over the course of the next 10-12 years. Importer: Weygandt-Metzler, Peter Weygandt, Unionville, PA; tel. (610) 486-0800. [Pierre Rovani, 31/08/2001]

Anticipated maturity: 2001-2013