WTN: 2005 Comte Armand Volnay

2005 Comte Armand Volnay 13% 375ml
Had this at home with bread & brie. Straightforward nose of cherry and vanilla. Later, some burnt sugar crept into the mix. Good density, elegant but not complex fruit, confirming the cherry and vanilla plus some stemminess and noticeable alcohol. Probably needs a few more years to integrate the latter. Tastes serious and well-made, but without any surprises. At any restaurant here, this would be a godsend; at home, I found myself wanting the fruit to be either more exhuberant or more complex. If neither is present, I want the wine to surprise me. Absent all of these, at this point I would say "nice wine," but feel no particular motivation to go out and buy more.

[David M. Bueker]

Perhaps this has gone into a shell? Lots of the '05s are closing down really hard.

Perhaps this has gone into a shell? Lots of the '05s are closing down really hard.

It seemed aromatic enough to suggest that it wasn't closed. I just looked up the Burghound review and Meadows says he could barely make an assessment because there was so much reduction in the barrel. So perhaps this is only now beginning to emerge.

[David M. Bueker]

Could be. Your burned sugar descriptor could very well be a sign of lingering reduction.