(from 90+ year old vines that are worked by horse) Here the nose is quite similar to that of the Clos de la Roche save for the fact that it's spicier. There is a silky texture to the detailed and sleekly muscular medium-bodied flavors that are not as powerful though the refinement of a classic Clos St. Denis is explicitly in evidence on the hugely long finish. In a word, this is terrific. *Don't miss.*

The 2012 Clos Saint-Denis Grand Cru, which is owned by Domaine Gagey and located adjacent to the vines of Philippe Charlopin, is higher-toned than the Clos de la Roche with scents of cassis and blueberry entwined with Indian ink, the oak nicely integrated. The palate is medium-bodied with very fine tannins. Here it calms down, gains more harmony than the aromatics, and finishes sleek and sensual. There is just a touch of spice on the aftertaste, wrapping things up nicely.(NM)

The Clos St. Denis is also from Domaine Gagey and the wine is very fine in 2012, wafting from the glass in a deep and class nose of cherries, red plums, coffee, a beautiful base of soil, exotic spice tones and cedar. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and focused, with its spicy new wood component not quite integrated at this moment, but with a fine core of fruit, lovely minerality and a long, suavely-tannic and very transparent finish. I assume that the new wood will seamlessly integrate with more aging (there is only one new barrel here out of three) and the wine should be outstanding with a decade’s worth of bottle age.