Bruno Clair’s wines are supposed to be tannic when young. So add the vintage year of 2004, and you know this is not going to be a wildly popular bottle at this stage. Still, the balance is impeccable with beautiful pinot fruit and with soy sauce and floral notes waiting quietly in the wings. In the interest of full disclosure, I’m almost completely unaffected by the 2004 “green meanies” and I drink tea without sugar (unless it’s black tea.) As good as this is, I’ve had other vintages of Clair Marsannays (95, 02) that are simply better wines with more going on, regardless of the “green” issue. Still, I’m happy I bought this, and will open the next bottles with high hopes in at least 8-10 years.
Karl