2023 Burgundy harvest – 12 September

By billn on September 12, 2023 #vintage 2023

The harvest is slowing down a lot in some areas – Côte de Beaune whites for instance – though some later pickers such as Buisson-Charles were in the vines today. Plenty of the CdB reds have also been picked but we are many days away from the end to those – much of the grapes higher up on the hillsides are still waiting for their day.

In other places, like the Côte de Nuits – and who could forget Chablis – it is gaining momentum.

Many of the Côte d’Or’s remaining reds are showing plenty of shrivelled grapes – but we can say that it’s next level in the Côte de Nuits. It’s more than anything that I’ve ever seen.

Some vineyards look very good with not too much shrivelled fruit, others look very depressing – like parts of the Clos St.Jacques. A close contact – who you may hear from in the next days – tells me there is great fruit in the Côte de Nuits, and a lot of it, but also a troubling amount that is shrivelled. For some of this fruit, the rain that is currently falling in Beaune is clearly too late, for some other vines it will undoubtedly help – though I’ve also heard of some hail today between Marsannay and Dijon, so…

Small notes from underway:

  • The Clos des Lambrays which wasn’t picked on Friday – now is.
  • The attention to detail in La Tâche is so impressive. All of La Tâche is now picked but there is so much fruit under the vines – discarded – they have clearly taken only the best to cuverie!
  • In the village of Vosne’s GCs, it’s mainly La Grand Rue that is waiting to be picked – the grapes looking way better than a lot of RSV…
  • Dark skies and thunder in Nuits around 15h30 – but with hardly a drop of rain. Until later!

More tomorrow…

a little hydration… and a larger rumour…

By billn on September 11, 2023 #degustation

A mixed bag from okay to great – the ‘okay‘ was probably self-inflicted 🙂

2000 Sylvie Spielmann, Riesling Bergheim
Darker yellow colour but with a classic maturing riesling nose – no petrol but lots of complexity. In the mouth, it is almost a youngster but with lots of width to the flavours on the palate. My only critique on this day was that the flavour was a little too dry – I was missing some succulence, which could have been my palate that day but it didn’t stop me taking a third glass 😉 And – hey! – it’s a more than 20-year-old ‘villages’ riesling in great shape!
Rebuy – Maybe

2020 Alain Geoffroy, Chablis 1er Fourchaume
I’d already put this in the freezer for a quick chill when my wife said – ‘no, let’s have the riesling.’ So I forgot about the Chablis! 2 days later – oops – what’s this(?) Of course, I didn’t need a cork-screw but I did need an hour in a warm room before I could pour anything out of the bottle 🙂
I’d clearly done a good job of ‘cold stabilisation‘ as this wine had thrown out a fine white sand of tartrate crystals. But what of the wine itself? Well, unlike my last 2020 1er from here, which was not showing any of the vintage pyrazines – this clearly was. Both on the nose and the palate. The flavours were a bit jumbled – I guess a couple of days in a freezer and having ejected your cork will do that to you!
Not a wine to make any kind of decision on!

2008 David Clark, Bourgogne Pinot Noir Au Pelson
My last bottle of this was opened in Chablis with friends at the start of this year – and it was disappointingly oxidative and ‘old.’ This was singing – broad, well textured, with a depth of flavour and none of acid-induced ‘sleekness’ of many 2008s. This was a great 2008 for the label. A good cork so back on form!
Rebuy – Yes

2021 Pierre Vincent Girardin, Bourgogne Chardonnay Éclat de Calcaire
Drunk in a restaurant. We actually ordered his villages Meursault which has the same cuvée name and only noticed the mistake as the cork came out of the neck – not a problem – we saved some €€€!
Ooh, If I had to nail my colours to the mast, blind, I’d have said a very fine 2021 Chablis 1er Cru! Complex, energetic, sherbet and yellow citrus. I was going to be the driver so only had the single, small, glass – but this wine made a simply great impression. I’m going to have to try (very hard) to visit and taste his 2022s at the end of this year!
Rebuy – Yes

And the rumour?
Well, it’s not really a rumour as far as I can tell. It seems that Jean-Pierre Cournut of the Château de la Maltroye has already made his last wines. This year, I’m told, all his crop is being bought and divided by PYCM and PVG – it was the above wine that reminded me 😉 It’s almost certain that Monsieur Cournut won’t be returning to his vats next year and nobody seems to think that another generation of the family have any interest in the vines – so – watch this space. For the moment I assume the acquisition of the grapes by PYCM and PVG to be opportunistic, rather than with long-term aspirations – but let’s see!

There are more ‘rumours’ too – maybe I’ll trickle them out. One that I previously introduced you to seems now to be a done deal – the sale of Domaine Monthelie Douhairet Porcheret to the (relatively new) team of Château de la Commaraine…

2023 Burgundy harvest – 10 September

By billn on September 10, 2023 #vintage 2023

It’s hot out there!

At the home domaine we are starting as early as possible – but it’s not that early – why? Because a lot of our pickers take the train from Dijon to Beaune, and at the weekend there are no early trains – they can’t be in Beaune before 7am. So that means that the first grapes are arriving at the domaine for sorting from about 8am.

Our domaine was supposed to start harvesting on Friday but the previous week’s warm weather meant that some vines needed picking a couple of days earlier than planned – but now we’re back to normal.

Those early morning grapes are lovely and cool to the touch – as the morning moves towards lunchtime – they become far from cool to the touch! Because of this, our team of pickers have been calling a halt picking by 2:30pm – when it was, today, already 35°C in the vines – for our American cousins, that’s 95°F.

The whites look fine – there’s not a lot of sorting to do – our domaine have done Savigny 1er Hautes Jarrons, Corton-Charlemagne, Chorey Blanc and Pernand 1er Cru Sous Frétille. We are certainly back to a more classic – whites ready before the reds – vintage. So far I’ve only seen the red Corton-Renardes – always ready early given it’s exposure to the sun. It’s the reds that seem more complicated. Lots of them (the grapes) are starting to shrivel – more-so in the Côte de Nuits – but not just. Yet, a lot of them are not yet quite ripe, so…(?) Actually, better said, the ripeness is variable. There is a little rot, but not much – it gives the impression that it was starting to grow until the weather became hot and dry – which, largely, stopped the spread.

An interesting side-note: We have a decent amount of pinot gris co-planted in our parcel of Corton-Charlemagne. Usually, I don’t see a lot of interest in these grapes – I see them only as ‘fillers’ – but this year the gris has a lovely perfume in the mouth. Lert’s see!

There are rains forecast from Tuesday pm – and a modest cooling of the temperature – for 2 days. Maybe that will be enough to kick any recalcitrant grape clusters into shape – those that won’t already have been harvested!

I’ve seen worse, but we are collecting quite a few ladybugs/birds over our triage table…

PS: It would be remiss of me not to tell you that the Chablisiennes are now starting to pick their grapes too!

75th Chablis Wine Festival – October 21 & 22, 2023

By billn on September 09, 2023 #events

75th Fête de Chablis

Press Release:

Celebrate the new vintage with the winegrowers of Chablis and Grand Auxerrois!

Organized by the Office du Chablis in partnership with the Bureau Interprofessionnel des Vins de Bourgogne (BIVB) the Chablis Wine Festival is a major event of the year combining discoveries and tastings.

About forty winegrowers from Chablis and Grand Auxerrois will be present all weekend on the boulevard du Docteur Tacussel (in Chablis town centre). Amateurs, connoisseurs, professionals and the general public will be able to taste wines from different appellations and vintages on the stands.

IN THE PROGRAM:

Tastings of wines and also local products, walks, activities, meetings with professionals…

The traditional parade of the Confrérie des Piliers Chablisiens will be held on Sunday morning. Accompanied by the Godfather and Godmother of the 2023 vintage, the President of the Wine Festival, the officials and the “Les Enfants de Chablis” brass band.

2023 Burgundy harvest – 08 September

By billn on September 08, 2023 #vintage 2023

Just some quick observations:

  • Many more people harvesting in the Côte de Beaune versus 2 days ago – there were more teams in the reds too.
  • A bunch of people were picking in Montrachet today, including the largest owners – Laguiche (Drouhin) – the Montrachet vines of Bouchard Père and DRC had been harvested since Tuesday.
  • The reds of the Côte de Beaune look a little less shrivelled than many in the CdNuits – but still partly – and there are a few more domaines starting their campaign in the vines in the CdNuits too – though most that I speak to plan their start over the weekend or Monday
  • DRC have harvested many of their vines – Romanée-Conti was done – except for the vines following the wall that runs parallel with La Grand Rue – maybe they are leaving those grapes for the birds!

I start my triage tomorrow!

a new report…

By billn on September 07, 2023 #reports

Meursault!Just a heads-up that another 20 domaines have been uploaded to the report section.

It’s a mix of people that I couldn’t fit in at the end of last year, plus others that prefer to show their wines a little later – or in some cases earlier too 🙂

Given the low volume of the 2021 vintage it’s no surprise that one or two domaines were only offering 2022s to taste – so that’s a vintage change about 1-2 months earlier than in most years – but it’s not a surprise!

Enjoy!

1999 JF Mugnier – just the Chambolle…

By billn on September 06, 2023 #degustation

1999 JF Mugnier Chambolle-MusignyHaving been quite impressed with my recent Petits Monts I thought I might test another of my 1999 problem children 😉

With such easy availability back in 2001/2002 – at least where I lived – I bought quite a bit from chez Mugnier in those years. Musigny was also no problem way back when – I may open a 1998 at Christmas-time… But I digress!

I bought half a dozen bottles and 12-pack of half bottles of this 1999. The bottles were delicious, if structural, when young. The longer they were kept, the less attractive they became. For whatever reason, all of my 75cls were drunk a long time ago but fewer of the 37.5s – so let’s look at one of those:

1999 JF Mugnier, Chambolle-Musigny
Half-bottle. The cork takes plenty of effort to budge – but surprises me by coming out in one piece – bravo! And this quercus-suber bark smells quite sweet.
The colour is modest for this vintage – only a medium red and with a faint haze too – perhaps I hadn’t been gentle enough with the bottle! The nose has some encouraging signs but it’s a note of brett that grows more quickly and takes over the centre stage: a beefy, bretty impression that I might say comes with the territory if the wine was another 15-20 years older – but not today. In the mouth, the stark austerity of this wine’s early teens is much less overt – it’s clearly better – but there’s still a slightly hard minerality to the middle and finishing flavours, though here the flavours are clean and I don’t note any meaty bretty influence. There’s also almost enough sweetness to carry the wine. Actually, the fluidity, intensity and texture are big positives with this wine but to be honest, at this age, I’m still pleased that it’s only a half-bottle – as there’s less for me to drink! This remains one of my least successful 1999 purchases – except for those first 3 bottles, 20 years ago…
Rebuy – No

2023 Harvesting…

By billn on September 06, 2023 #vintage 2023

Well, nearly!

Some are already at it but my first harvest day will be Saturday.

I did a bit of a tour of the Côte de Beaune and the Côte de Nuits yesterday. 99% of the activity was in the Côte de Beaune, and 90% of that was whites.

The white hillsides had harvesters in just about all locations but it was just a few domaines here and there – not all domaines. There was a small amount of red harvesting to be seen – I’m assuming for the grapes of the precocious young vines. I remember in a recent hot vintage – 2020 – that Chartron in Puligny had started their harvest with their red Puligny 1er Les Caillerets – this year it’s the more classic ‘chardonnay first’ style of vintage and their red Caillerets is still waiting to be picked.

A lot of Montrachet is still waiting to be picked but much of Chevalier-Montrachet – despite being higher on the slope – has already been picked. And some of the vines – like those of Bouchard Père – are continuous but their Chevalier is picked, their Montrachet not. Likewise, the neighbouring Montrachet of DRC was also waiting to be picked. Reds are slowly coming into focus though: d’Angerville started yesterday, David Croix and Thibaud Clerget started today – Guillaume d’Angerville noting that his teams are starting early and finishing at midday due to the heat of the day – just now it’s about 33-35°C each day with not much change in this pattern of weather before Monday/Tuesday, next week. The team at Lafon are almost finished!

It’s clear that there are plenty of white grapes on the vines of the Côte d’Or – as we will see – also the reds.

Whilst the red grapes in the Côte de Beaune look pretty good – I had the impression that the grapes in the Côte de Nuits – a random sample – looked to have more challenges, ie more variable ripeness, a little rot behind some of the grapes and, seemingly, ever-more raisined berries too. Like in the Côte de Beaune, plenty of grapes though. This included the great grand crus of Richebourg and Romanéée St.Vivant. I already mentioned the generous amount of grapes – and some of the bunches are impressively large too – but in Romanée St.Vivant there was evidence of plenty of green harvesting – probably done in July. I think a necessary step for anyone looking for a decent level of ripeness. Whilst some vines remain green and vigorous, I observed a lot of very dry vines – in both Côtes – vines that already look like it’s the end of October when the grapes have long been picked – this surprises me given the relatively consistent amounts of rain this year.

Early indications are that the acidity in the grapes is low but the amount of potassium in the grapes is also low this year – ‘So what we have, we should be able to keep!

For those with an interest, the harvest is getting underway in Beaujolais and the Mâconnais but all is seemingly quiet for now in Chablis.

weekend wines, week 34 2023

By billn on August 29, 2023 #degustation

weekend wines, week 34 2023

Well, that’s settled – my harvest in Beaune starts on Thursday 8th September. Now back to the wines 😉

2014 Dubreuil-Fontaine, Corton-Charlemagne
A fine looking natural cork from Trescases
Oops – but that’s a deep colour – plenty of brown here. The nose is obviously oxidative, slightly caramel too – I have the impression of a ‘very natural’ cider in my glass. A sip tells me it’s obviously oxidised but has a great mineral spine – such a shame. I put my glass in the fridge for a couple of hours – as it’s 35°C in the garden – as I’m sure it will freshen up and probably still be modestly drinkable. I was wrong – no improvement. What a shame. I fully appreciate and applaud why Christine Dubreuil changed part of her range of whites to DIAM seals…
Rebuy – No

1999 Veronique Drouhin, Vosne-Romanée 1er Petits-Monts
This used to be a wine could easily source – I bought two 6-packs from Denis Perret in Beaune – pre-ordered. I do remember them being quite expensive though – the price of a same vintage René Engel grand cru – how things have changed. The first bottles (more than 15 years ago) were fine but with time this wine became thin and uninteresting – time for it to sleep. This the first bottle from my second 6-pack – a good length of unbranded (by the supplier) cork.
Plenty of colour. This nose is direct, linear – you get my drift – but has a silky complexity and intensity. Much better than I remember from more than 10 years ago! In the mouth it’s redolent of the nose – direct, forceful and intense – and with a very impressive middle to finishing flavour. Still with some baby-wine austerity! 1999s continue to surprise me with their quality, yet after nearly 25 years, their unreadiness! This is the first of this purchase (bottle 7!) where I genuinely see the proximity of these vines to Richebourg. Potentially a great 1er – even from Vosne – but I would still be waiting another 4-5 years!
Rebuy – Yes

2021 Gautheron, Chablis Emeraude
My Charlemagne replacement – already many notes for this – I must put something else in the fridge 🙂

2019 Raphael Chopin, Beaujolais-Lantignié La Savoye
Lots of colour. Fresh, crunchy dark fruit – even a little extra floral interest with more air. Chunky, crunchy dark fruit flavour – but never heavy. I love the combination of energy but still intensity – again – never too much. Simply delicious – I only have a couple more – a shame!
Rebuy – Yes

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