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Domaine Simon Bize

I call in to see winemaker Chisa Bize on yet another sunny afternoon in Burgundy, the region enjoying a very late Indian summer. She forewarned: There isn’t much wine. That is not totally unexpected! “It was a COVID vintage in the sense that the vines were nervous. The season was mediocre, the worst in my lifetime, with the diseases. From the beginning, the vines were fragile and exhausted. The frost was everywhere, and there was a lot of rain, so the vines were susceptible, especially the Chardonnay. I accept Nature. I accepted the frost, so I didn’t seek protection, perhaps not enough in hindsight. So, in the end, we lost 80% of the production. The dilemma is whether to use more sulphur and copper or stronger treatments or just let the vines react. I don’t know the answer to that. This kind of failure is a lesson. Over five years, the production has been just below average. We started the picking around 14 September, but it took a long time because of the tiny bunches. The reds are 100% whole bunch because the volume was so small with a soft extraction. We made a Savigny Vergelesses, and we blended the Fourneaux, Talmettes and Marconnets. Les Guettes and Serpentières produced no fruit, so we decided to pull out the vineyard and replant. There is leaf roll virus in this area that is making the vines less productive. It was a tough decision.” This was a very tricky season for Bize to navigate, and it is clear in the tiny volumes of wine within a shortened portfolio that 2021 was a constant struggle. There are a couple of lovely wines, such as the Savigny Aux Guettes and Vergelesses, plus the solitary Côtes de Nuits from Latricières-Chambertin untouched by frost. Otherwise, these wines are more for early drinking. They’ll fight another day – in 2022.

From Servants of the Seasons: Burgundy 2021 (Jan 2023) by Neal Martin

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2021 Bourgogne Perrières

Color: Red

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