Domaine Comte Georges de Vogue Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru 1996 (750ml)

Few estates in Burgundy can claim a lineage like Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé, whose roots in Chambolle-Musigny reach back to the fifteenth century and whose vineyards have passed through the same family by inheritance for more than twenty generations. The domaine takes its name from Count Georges de Vogüé, who guided it through much of the twentieth century, and it is best known as the largest owner of Musigny. Its parcel of Bonnes-Mares, one of the most significant holdings in the cru, lies at the Chambolle end of this grand cru, which stretches across the village boundary into Morey-Saint-Denis. Here the vines root into heavier, iron-rich red clay, which gives the wine a broader frame and firmer muscle than the domaine’s more ethereal Musigny. The 1996 was made under longtime winemaker François Millet, who favored patient, minimal handling that lets the vineyard speak. The growing season ended with sunshine and cool, drying north winds that concentrated the fruit while preserving unusually bright acidity, and the vintage became known for structured, long-lived wines that reward decades in the cellar. Nearly thirty years on, this bottle offers a rare chance to taste a classic Bonnes-Mares from one of the Côte de Nuits’ most storied names as it reaches maturity.