The following is a report from Peter Weygandt on the 2009 vintage from Burgundy:
On September 15, I arrived in the Cote de Nuits. Domaine des Lambrays had already finished the day before, having started the 9th. Bernard Dugat finished the evening I arrived, have started the 10th. The lowest degree sugar/alcohol for Dugat and Lambrays was 13.0, with the Champeaux of Dugat coming in at 14.3% natural and the Mazoyeres 14%. The Grand Cru at Lambrays was 13.5% natural. The following were the results for Philippe Collotte in Marsannay:
Bourgogne Noble Souche—13.8%
Marsannay Champsalamon—14.4%
Marsannay Vieilles Vignes—14.1%
Marsannay Clos de Jeu – 13.9%
Fixin Crais de Chene –14% etc.At Christian Serafin, with whom we have the privilege to begin working commencing with his beautiful 2007s, Christian stated to me that the Morey 1er Cru Millandes and the Gevrey 1er Cru Corbeaux were both 14.5% natural at harvest, and all his parcels came in near or over 14%. Cecile Tremblay’s lowest degree was for a parcel of Bourgogne, at 12.5%. Everything else was over 13%, with Chapelle over 14%.
Even more amazing than these levels of ripeness, were the pHs in combination with this sugar: Bernard Dugat had a pH of 3.08 as a low to 3.33 as his highest reading, and all others I visited reported levels to me between 3.2 and 3.4. I think it is safe to say that this combination of ripeness and potential acidity has not been seen in a long, long time. Growers had to go back to their grandfathers to find anything similar – maybe 1959; maybe 1947 or 1949. Maybe never before.
It is not, however, all roses (or rather perfect Pinots). There was an enormous amount of rain in mid-July (and hail). Only growers who worked quickly and non-stop in mid to late July accomplished something great. For others there was mildew, and even worse, oidium. One could see parcels so attacked by oidium that there were no ripe grapes. After that that “battle” in July the weather turned perfect – nothing but sunshine and heat, sometimes very high, from mid-July to September 19 (when there was only a light shower). Thus even those who harvested late (but harvested healthy grapes) will make superb wines.
I picked grapes a couple days (by then harvest was almost over) and what I saw was indeed truly amazing. The proof of this all, though, was in the juice – never have I tasted unfermented juice so perfect – already one could taste, with the juice from each separately vinified parcel, beautiful ripe rich fruit, distinctive terroir already expressed from each lieu, and the whole sensation wrapped in a silky smooth envelope on the palate. It is the same sensation that I recall when tasting the 2007 Chateauneufs for the first time. – Peter Weygandt – October 3, 2009
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