Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé, Musigny Grand Cru 'Cuvee Vieilles Vignes', Côte de Nuits, France, 1999

Overview of the Wine
Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé is one of the most famous producers in Burgundy, with a lineage dating back almost half a millennium in the Côte d'Or. The family is part of the history of the village of Chambolle-Musigny, where it produces elegant wines made from Pinot Noir.

The self-proclaimed Domaine de Musigny, de Vogüé has around 70 percent of its land in the Le Musigny Grand Cru vineyard and 6.5 acres (2.7 hectares) of Bonnes-Mares. Vines are also held in the famous Les Amoureuses Premier Cru vineyard, as well as Les Baudes and Les Fuées, although these are often used to make the village-level wine.

Musigny's steep slopes and stony, friable soils, and winemaker Francois Millet's minimally invasive techniques, combine to produce a heavily fragranced wine with notes of violets, raspberries and blackberries. The wine, which is one of the most expensive in Chambolle-Musigny, is highly collectable and has the ability to age for decades. The Bonnes-Mares wine, on the other hand, tends to be more robust, with more direct fruit and stronger tannins. 

Grape / Blend
Pinot Noir

Origin
Côte de Nuits, Burgundy, France

Winemaker's Tasting Notes
Profoundly flavored and impressively structured, yet still lacy and light on the tongue; a wine that will age for 30 years or more with grace.

97 Points - Vinous
Deep, dark red and black fruit aromas are complicated by cinnamon, black pepper, roast coffee and a hint of truffley underbrush. Wonderfully rich but classy and reserved, and not a bit heavy. Utterly silky, plush, energetic wine with a relaxed quality to its lively dark fruit and dark chocolate flavors. Finishes classically dry, with beautifully buffered tannins and captivating building sweetness. Amazingly, this 375-milliliter bottle seems still short of its peak, so I would imagine that well-stored 750s still need time.

96 Points - Burghound
In contrast to the general style of the vintage, this is still aromatically austere though with coaxing, reveals wonderfully complex aromas of an incredible array of black fruits, earth, spice, crushed herbs and notes of chocolate. The imposingly-scaled flavors are huge but refined, powerful but subtle and rich yet detailed with a stupendously long finish that offers intense minerality where the only nit is a hint of warmth. This is genuinely stunning juice and not to be missed though I underscore that it is most definitely in need of further cellar time.

Product size: 750mL