1945 Leon Violland Beaune 1er La Montée Rouge

This wine was surprisingly fresh and dark-colored. It was clear to every taster that this wine benefited from the old Burgundy practice of adding Grenache or other similar hardy red varietal from the Rhone or Algeria to Pinot Noir to provide body and color to the wine. This wine looked and smelled Rhone and had none of the secondary charms of an aged Pinot Noir. The cork was black and appeared authentic, and if the wine was really over 60 years, it had remarkable grip and persistence. Reviewed December 10, 2006

Winery: Leon Violland
From article: The Magic of Old Burgundies