2016 - Corton Grand Cru Les Pougets, Domaine des Heritiers Louis Jadot

The 2016 Corton-Pougets Grand Cru (Domaine des Héritiers Jadot) is excellent, unwinding in the glass with a youthfully reserved bouquet of ripe cherries, wild berries and bergamot, complemented by savory bass notes of mossy forest floor, espresso roast and grilled squab. On the palate, the wine is full-bodied, deep and tight-knit, with excellent amplitude and dimension, fine-grained but firm structuring tannins and a penetrating, mineral finish. The potential here is very fine indeed but this is not a wine for those seeking immediate gratification and a decade of patience will be in order.

The 2016 Corton Grand Cru demonstrates a lot of oak on the nose with hints of smoky bacon crisps bedeviling the red fruit underneath. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin. Thankfully, here the oak is less present and this Corton shows fine harmony and persistence, a spicy residue lingering in the mouth. One of the better examples if, and only if, the oak is subsumed with bottle age on the nose. Tasted blind at the 2016 Burgfest tasting.

Cask sample. Mid crimson. More red-fruited than the Grèves with an attractively dusty overlay. Oak is more evident here but not overwhelming. Chewy, fresh and just a touch spicy on the long finish. Excellent potential. (JH)