With Hart, James and Sungku at Le Clos.

As a burgundy newbie, I’d never heard of a red Chassagne-Montrachet before. The somm threw this out as an option; something weirder and different, but still in the style of Volnay and Chambolles. Simon Colin is apparently an up-and-coming winemaker.

In the glass: light bodied, ruby color with a distinct purple tinge. Huge meniscus.

The initial nose was intensely aromatic straight from the bottle after about 30-40 mins of aerating in the bottle – rich red fruits, and an oddly distinct Bordeaux oakiness (which I struggled to pinpoint until SK pointed it out). Also an interesting burst of black fruits. Maybe blackcurrant.

On the palate: the wine was off dry with a distinct touch of residual sugar. Light body, yet palate coating with mid+ acidity and and mid- tannins. Low alcohol. Surprisingly long finish.

As the wine breathed over a period of a further 1-1.5, I found that the oakiness kept edging forward and became very prominent, and it also started to taste drier. At some point, I thought the oak overtook the fruit by such an extent I soon found it unbalanced.

This wine is soooo very very very young. It’s unclear to me if my issue with its late-stage oakiness is due to the winemaker, or because of how young it is. Giving it a 4.0, because of how much I loved the wine in the first half.