Bourgogne Leroy Rouge, 1990

Madame Lalou Bize-Leroy, owner of the Domaine de la Romanee Conti, is the producer of arguably the very best (and most expensive) Burgundy wines. As French wine critic Michael Bettane put it, "Domaine Leroy is a welcome reminder of the difference between the very good and the great." This simple Bourgogne is the least prestigious of the estate's wines, and I was fortunate enough to get this 1990 on futures for about $150/case. You'll pay $90 a bottle for this 1990 (if you can find one) today, and even the current vintage sells for about $40.

The color shows good saturation, with some amber tones, and there is plenty of sediment as Mme Leroy predicts on the label, since the wine has not been filtered. I get some tanky scents when the wine is first opened, but they give way to wild cherries, cranberries and flowers. On the palate, the cherries are dominant. There is none of the earthiness that I usually find in Pinot Noir. The terroir for this wine has resulted in more fresh fruit plus savory tones of iodine, herbs and mushroom. The after taste is very long and satisfying.