2007 Domaine Dujac, Clos Saint-Denis Grand Cru 1x750ml

Robert Parker 91

Black tea on the nose; a stony background on the palate; and palate inflections of ginger and rhubarb all offer counterpoint to an almost raspberry syrup-like sweetness of fruit as well as a vanillin overlay in the Dujac 2007 Clos St.-Denis. While this might sound like the recipe for yet another bifurcated wine of its vintage, somehow the whole Gestalt works. The combination of relative delicacy with intensity of flavor; tenderness of texture with a focused if elusive sense of minerality; and satisfying primary juiciness all suggest a wine as worth revisiting 4-5 years from now as it is a delight today. a oeIt’s a quintessential Dujac wine,a says Seysses, more or less summarizing my impressions. It should be worth following for close to a decade. The Dujac 2008s were not racked until last December, and bottling took place January through March. a oeThe malic acid numbers were high-ish, but not significantly higher than in, say, 2006 or 2001,a says Jeremy Seysses in an effort to explain what he admitted were a oefor us, excessively late malos. I have a feeling it was a lack of nutrients that were wash out,a he continues, since, after all, a oeit rained a lot in 2008a with, he adds, a oepoor fruit set proving to be the vintage’s saving grace. I think we would actually have had less to harvest (i.e. worth keeping) if we had had a better fruit set. There was rot, but can you find it in any of the wines? That’s a credit to how far Burgundy has come along in terms of sortinga (which Dujac does exclusively in the vineyard, not on sorting tables " the name of their U.S. importer ironically notwithstanding). a oeI didn’t love my lack of options in 2007,a says Seysses of the preceding season, a oeso we picked early " earlier even than in 2003.a In vinification a oewe decided not to force too much, and just to keep it charming,a which is exactly how I thought the wines turned out. a oeAt Domaine Dujac, we’re never been that attached to deep color, so we’re quite tolerant (in that regard), and the least thing we wanted to do was make hard wines. I de-stemmed more (than usual, or than in 2008). The fruit felt fragile, so in barrel I kept the wines under a bit more free sulfur than usual, which reinforced their lightness.a Seysses opines that 2007 was not a year in which old selections displayed their overall superiority to clones, because a oeif yo(‘re Pinots) were riper earlier, you were ripe while it was raining,a whereas in 2008 you could scarcely get too much ripeness. Importer: The Sorting Table, Napa, CA; tel. (415) 491-4724 [David Schildknecht, 30/06/2010]

Vinous 92

Palish medium red. Refined aromas of candied red fruits, rose petal, minerals, herbs and spices; very Clos-Saint-Denis. Juicy, pure and understated on the palate, with a subtle perfume to the flavors of wild strawberry, raspberry, flowers and spices. Not the last word in depth but finishes with captivating floral persistence. [Stephen Tanzer, 03/01/2010]