The colour is pale ruby/garnet. On the nose mushrooms, eucalyptus and pepper. In the mouth elegant, with some strawberries flavour. The aftertaste is discreet, but medium long.
Charmes-Chambertin is an Appellation d’origine contrôlée (AOC) and one of the 24 Grand Cru vineyards of the Côte de Nuits subregion of Burgundy. It is made with Pinot Noir grapes.
Grand Cru (great growth) is the highest level in the vineyard classification of Burgundy. The origin of Burgundy’s Grand crus can be traced to the work of the Cistercians who, from amongst their vast land holdings in the region, were able to delineate and isolate plots of land that produced wine of distinct character. They represent slightly more than 1% of the total wine production of Burgundy. Most are small and can have many owners, due to the structure of post-French Revolution inheritance laws.
In Burgundy there are over 100 approved wine growing areas. These are divided into 4 levels of quality:
- 1% Grand Cru, Burgundy’s top plots. There are 37 Grand Crus. About 60% of the production is dedicated to Pinot Noir, the rest to Chardonnay.
- 10% Premier Cru. There are 640 Premier Cru plots in Burgundy.
- 37% Village Wines from a village or commune of Burgundy. There are 44 villages.
- 52% Regional Wines, which are made from overarching Bourgogne appellations.
I received this prestigious wine as a present from a friend. In Switzerland this bottle sells at around 130 CHF.
Country: France
Region: Burgundy
Grapes: Pinot Noir
Type: Red
Vintage: 2011
Producer: Joseph Drouhin
Price range: Luxury (>100 US$)
Pascal’s Enjoyment Index: 4/5