Domaine Michel Lafarge, Volnay Premier Cru, Clos des Chenes 2005

Full ruby-red. Pure, complex but restrained nose offers blackberry, black cherry, licorice, spices and black pepper. Wonderfully intense and vibrant, with a compellingly chewy texture and great thrust to the highly concentrated dark fruit and bitter chocolate flavors. The fine-grained tannins spread out to saturate the palate of this powerfully structured Volnay, with the wine's perfume lingering in the mouth for minutes. I asked Frederic when the estate last made a Clos des Chenes as good as this, and he replied that it's the best since the '61. Extended bottle aging may well bring an even higher rating. Volnay doesn't get much better than this.