The 2012 Clos des Lambrays Grand Cru was tasted as a blend of one new and one used barrel, representing what the final assemblage will be. There are just 50 pieces this year, whereas normally there are over 100. It has a distinctive, quintessential Clos des Lambrays bouquet with well-defined brambly black fruit, forest floor and damp moss scents. Fine tannins underpin the palate with crisp, almost sharp acidity and a slightly herbaceous finish that distinguishes it from others. As so often the case, it comes across stern and rustic in its youth, but experience has told me that after 6-8 years in bottle that stem character will disappear and I like the balance and focus here. 90-92 points

The 2012 Clos des Lambrays was just a touch reduced at the time of my visit and was notsinging with the same perfect pitch as the villages and premier cru cuvées, but this is clearly a legendary vintage for the Clos. Underneath the whiff of reduction is a very nascently complex and refined wine, offering up scents of black cherries, blueberries, espresso, kaleidoscopic dark soil tones, woodsmoke, fresh herb tones, incipient notes of the quail to come and a discreet base of new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, pure and still quite primary, with a rock solid core of fruit, outstanding focus and balance, fine-grained tannins and stunning length and grip on the seamless finish. A glorious vintage for this great terroir. 2022-2075+. 96 points