Bruno Colin Chassagne Montrachet Vieilles Vignes 2010: Dark mahogany-wine color; aromatically complex with cherry, plum, violet nose;
ripe cherry, spice, dark cherry and berry, delicate minerality on the palate. This is Burgundy premier cru, made by fourth generation of noteworthy wine family from 37-year-old vines; imported by legendary wine merchant Kermit Lynch, so you expect this to be rich, round, delicious—and it is; whiff of rusticity, but overall elegant structure evolves with air; subtle, somewhat quick finish (for this level of pinot noir). Michel Colin was third generation Burgundy grower in prestigious Côte de Beaune; when he retired in 2003, his sons split the estate; son Bruno farms eight hectares of land (almost 20 acres) in 30 different parcels scattered among five communes. That is how land goes under the Napoleonic codes of inheritance where property divides equally among offspring; it is quintessentially Burgundian. This wine comes from premier area—Montrachet is terroir royalty; it lies between the two communes of Chassagne-Montrachet and Puligny-Montrachet, regarded as the superior grand cru regions in an area many consider to be the greatest pinot noir region on earth. Delicious and extraordinarily well priced for wine of such rarefied, royal trappings. $49 