Pommard - Les Pezerolles	1979	Dom. de Montille

Acquired from England for $67 (imported for $84 net).
Another opportunity to taste a rare old bottle from an impeccable source but a problematic vintage. Many areas (especially in the Cote de Nuits) suffered from rot, and most wines from this vintage have fallen apart long ago.
Pommard have never been one of my favorite communes in the Cote d'Or. As a matter of fact, I've never tasted a Pommard that was even close to a great (B). Well, that is until this bottle...
Domaine de Montille (nowadays referred to as Hubert de Montille) has a reputation of making very age-worthy wines that many times taste rough and closed if tasted young. Ok, this 17-years-old 1er Cru ain't young so let's see:
COLOR: Very nice fat color, a bit faded but not really much. Some clearing towards the rim and a lot of sediment showing.
NOSE: Immediately upon opening, a bombardment of aromas on the nose. Fresh cherries(!), beautiful and clean 'Bourgogne Nose', that mature and complex dry prunes element, sweetish gamey touch, all combine to that familiar sensation of not wanting to stop sniffing. In the course of an hour or so the nose became more homogeneous and it became more and more difficult to tell the elements apart.
TASTE: As happens often with a great-nose old wine, one is afraid the taste won't fulfill the promise. Just the opposite here! Mouthful of delightful, full-of-presence nectar. Multi-layered and a perfect harmony on the palate. I know I repeat myself, but given blind I would surely say this is a super-duper Cote de Nuits Grand Cru and not a 17 yrs 1er Cru Pommard (and from a bad vintage too). Each sip reveals more and more flavors and give more and more pleasure. A real treat and a pleasure to drink.
LENGTH: Extremely long and reverberating aftertaste that keeps on developing.
TEXTURE & BALANCE: A perfectly balanced (though not highly alcoholic) old great (B). Full of 'flesh' and winyness, with good acidity and some discernable tannins to give it a well defined structure and backbone.
OVERALL: Magnificent, superb! Again a truly rare great bottle when all 'parameters' would indicate otherwise.
MARK: 18/20.aaaaaaaaBUY MORE? Yes.

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Jacob "Yak" Shaya.