Most wine today is opened before peak maturity. It’s not necessarily a bad thing – in general you’d rather drink a wine too young than too old. But as fewer wine drinkers cellar their wines and as winemakers increasingly craft cuvées for early drinking, it’s rarer to find a bottle that deserves patience and receives it.
Today’s wine is proof that just a few extra years transform even a humble village-level wine. Michel Gros’s Nuits-St-Georges from the terrific 2016 vintage is just about at peak. From vines near the border with Vosne-Romanée, this is floral, subtle and beautiful, combining the elegance of Vosne with the meaty character of Nuits.
This 2016 is a missive from Burgundy past – perhaps the last of an old style of vintage before the new hot-dry normal set in. The weight is ethereal and gorgeous; with just a half-hour in a decanter this will be singing from the glass. Serve it in a context with space for subtlety and understatement.
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Michel Gros Nuits-St-Georges 2016
bottle price:$102
15% off 2+ bottles with code: NSG16
