2012 Domaine Dominique Gallois Charmes-Chambertin

Domaine Dominique Gallois has been in the Gallois family since 1901, when Dominique’s great-grandfather purchased property. In 1989 Dominique took over and started producing his own wine, rather than selling his grapes to negociants. The estate owns 10 acres of parcels in Gevrey-Chambertin, Fixin and Couchey. Vineyards include Grand Cru, Premier Cru and village parcels. Burghound.com has called domaine wines “rich, intense, exuberantly fruity and sappy….”

Charmes-Chambertin is a 78-acre Grand Cru vineyard in Gevrey-Chambertin that traditionally includes the acreage of nearby Mazoyeres-Chambertin. For nearly 200 years the growers of Mazoyeres have been legally allowed to sell their wines under the more famous name of Charmes-Chambertin, and virtually all of them do. Charmes-Chambertin is the largest of the Gevrey-Chambertin Grand Crus, and it generally has an excellent reputation. The slope of the vineyard is gentle and the surface soil poor. But producers including Joseph Roty, Christian Serafin, Domaine Dujac, Faiveley and Joseph Drouhin are acclaimed for their Charmes Chambertin. Principal landholders are Camus, with 14.75 acres; Perrot-Minot, 4 acres; and Armand Rousseau, 3.5 acres.

This red wine is relatively light and can pair with a wide variety of foods. The grape prefers cooler climates and the wine is most often associated with Burgundy, Champagne and the U.S. west coast. Regional differences make it nearly as fickle as it is flexible.