Smart Money on the Cult Wine
2010 Drouhin Beaune 1er Cru
Clos des Mouches Rouge
"A great Clos des Mouches in the making."
-John Gilman, View from the Cellar
This is one of those secrets of the serious Burgundy fanatic.
Drouhin's Clos des Mouches is a wine that nearly always has some space in those glossy cellars filled with Grand Cru Burgundy and First Growth Bordeaux.
Why?
Because the wine just over delivers in a multitude of ways, though price is perhaps the area where it overachieves most dramatically. This is a wine that can go toe-to-toe with wines that cost 2 to 3 times the price. Many so-called "Grand Crus" simply don't have the depth or detail of fruit that Drouhin's Clos des Mouches does.
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Bobby and I visited Drouhin in late January and across the board, the 2010 Drouhin's are forces to be reckoned with. This is an awesome vintage for the estate, the purity and rigor of the vintage matching, perfectly, with the glowing, jewel-box style of Drouhin. Seriously, I haven't tasted wines with this depth, this cut since the famed 2005s.
And if the Drouhin lineup can sometimes seem a bit daunting, Clos des Mouches is simply one of the gems in their stable. It is, in fact, one of the first sites that Joseph Drouhin bought in the 1920s. The site itself is situated in a choice mid-slope location smack against Beaune's border with Pommard. The old vines claw into hard limestone.
Simply put: Clos des Mouches is a very special site and the wines have a reputation for making old bones - the Burghound has notes from recently tasting a great 1964.
And this translates to the wine - as it should. If Beaune is known for being somewhat sturdy and rustic, Clos des Mouches is something of an anomaly; the wine is strikingly elegant, suave and silky in texture. It is a wine that brings the force and heft of Beaune, yet does so with incredible composure (a composure that only increases with 5, 10, 15 years in the cellar) and always, always, an incredible snap of limestone and mineral.
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This is high-definition red Burgundy.
We've said this a lot lately, but it bears repeating here: Burgundy prices are on a swift trend upward and, sadly, 2010 won't offer any relief. Yields were down 30-40% and by all accounts, this is a very special and classical vintage. There's simply no reason for winemakers to throttle back on pricing. At $83.95 on bottles and $79.95 on 6-packs, this is one of the smartest buys around. Seriously - consider going long. The quality here as well as the famed longevity of the wine means that the solid case, tucked away for a decade, will seem like a very wise buy.
Burghound sums up the vintage as follows, "delivering superb flavor authority with such impeccable balance and grace." These characteristics promise to produce an especially thrilling rendition of this impressive and long-lived wine.
Drouhin's Clos des Mouches is a compelling reminder of the wisdom of the detailed carving up of Burgundy's slopes: Things really can change in just a few meters. This means that there's such a vast and complicated network of vineyards that delightful surprises pop up and with them, every so often, serious value.
To order, please email us at offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.
Ian McFadden
Director Fine & Rare Wine
Crush Wine & Spirits