Domaine Louis Latour, Corton Grand Cru (Burgundy, France) “Grancey” 2006

($120, Louis Latour Inc.): Corton, the only grand cru vineyard for red wine in the Cote de Beaune, is large and produces wines of variable quality.  Latour, the largest owner of the vineyard, makes one of the best.  Corton Grancey, a proprietary–not a plot–name, is a blend of wine from Latour’s best grand cru plots within the Corton vineyard.  It has a core of ripe, almost sweet, red fruit that is immediately captivating.  Unusually forward wine for a Corton, it still has a firmness that will take years of cellaring to soften.  Even at this stage, there are nuances of leafiness and earthiness that are the hallmark of Burgundy.  Not an intense wine–this is not the Cote de Nuits–it has marvelous persistence nonetheless. 92 Michael Apstein Mar 3, 2009