Medium cherry-red. The nose is wide, faintly funky and softly sweet and red. The palate is relatively soft with a red fruit complexion but initially simple with slightly shrill acidity. Aeration bit-by-bit subdues the acidity and you are left with a soft and friendly wine that shows little tannin and a reasonable length. Given a similar performance on day two (the bottle spent the night in the fridge) it seems more of a temperature effect – quite tart cold, smoother at room temperature. Easy drinking.
Bachelet Denis
2004 Bachelet Denis Côte de Nuits Villages
Deeper coloured and a little more purple than the Ecard Savigny that preceded it. The floral nose is wide and fresh with traces of cedar and a warm and sweet, slightly creamy and smoky depth. The palate is well concentrated for the appellation, flavour-packed and just a little sweet. Fresh acidity and grainy tannin combine to make this just a little more rustic than the Savigny, but the acidity pins you down for a reasonably long finish. That 2004 cedar note is also there on the palate, but in a modest fashion. It’s not the best example of this wine from the last years, but it’s a good example and as always, it shows lots of value.
2004 Bachelet Denis Gevrey-Chambertin Les Corbeaux
Medium, medium-plus cherry-red colour. An understated and tight nose slowly becomes creamy with glossy fruit. The cream of the nose is paralleled on the palate with impressive density to the precise creamy fruit that has a licorice edge. Mouth-watering acidity and understated smooth tannins that just cling a little to your gums. There is just a faint edge of bitterness in the finish which I can’t quite decide whether it comes from the grape or oak tannin, but it’s a good length. Very young – certainly a 2004 – but a very nice package.
1996 Bachelet Denis Charmes-Chambertin
1990 Bachelet Denis Charmes-Chambertin
The nose starts a little ripe and plummy, maybe even beetroot. It’s not so elegant to start with but slowly begins to release some wonderful red fruit – but it’s a passing phase and later tightens. The palate has some fat and a lovely texture. It actually seems a little simple vs the 1996 and certainly not as long. Still it’s a lovely wine.
2001 Bachelet Denis Gevrey-Chambertin Les Corbeaux
Medium-plus cherry-red. The nose starts a little funky and diffuse, little time is required to lose the funk and provide a wide, slighty warm and deep effect, eventually it’s a lovely redcurrant nose. Almost as intense as the two Jacques, equally mouth-watering and similarly long. The overall profile is slightly more rustic with some grain to the tannin, but as this tannin fades with timeyou are very close to a cut-price Clos St.Jacques. This is heartily recommended.
2001 Bachelet Denis Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes
Medium-plus ruby red, but still hinting at cherry-red at the rim. A really impressive nose that starts a little reduced – but only for a minute or two – then red fruit, edged with mint, becoming ever-more intense and deep – wow! Fresh presentation, very understated tannin, equally understated in the finish despite being long-lasting. This is not a fat wine, rather a wonderfully detailed one. Superb quality for a villages, and with respect to its appellation impressed me far more than the Bachelet 1er of last week – possibly even better than Rousseau’s 2001.