2006 Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru

April of 2007 featured 140 more sunshine hours than the long-term average, noted winemaker Pierre Morey, but each of the next four months received 30 to 40 fewer hours of sunshine than usual. But the summer was not as bad as advertised, Morey added, as the outbreak of mildew just affected the leaves, not the grapes. In fact, said Morey, "the 2007s are cleaner at this stage than were the 2004s, which were quite reduced, and the 2001s, which were blurred by heavy leesy notes." Sure, the 2007s are less powerful than the 2006s and 2005s, Morey went on, but very little chaptalization was needed (generally about a quarter of a degree) and the wines will drink well early. "The crop level was good but quantities were not explosive like 2004 and 1999," he explained. Incidentally, the 2006s here are carrying alcohol levels higher than the estate's 2003s, with the Meursault the lowest at 14%. "The wines are at the limit of surmaturite, and certainly a bit high in alcohol," said Morey. "But I thought the same thing about the '92s and those wines have evolved spectacularly. I believe these wines will be best in 8 to 15 years, sooner than the classic '05s, and that the botrytis notes will emerge with time." By the way, Morey retired from Domaine Leflaive at the end of July to focus his efforts on his own domain and his Morey-Blanc negociant operation; Eric Remy, who has worked with Morey at Leflaive in recent years, took over as cellarmaster.

The 2006 vintage brought a bit of noble rot, said winemaker Pierre Morey, and the domain eliminated some grey rot on its sorting table, which it has used since 2001 "systematically" for chardonnay. According to Morey, the team began harvesting on September 20 on the foot of the hillside, but with the sugars climbing rapidly, they quickly decided to harvest the grand crus on the 21st and 22nd. "I would have liked to finish the harvest two days earlier, but we started at the right time," said Morey. "The grapes looked great." According to Morey, the 2006s have average acidity, but a bit lower than that of 2005, which had a higher percentage of the more stable tartaric acidity. Due to the noble rot element, which brought a bit more unfermentable sugar, most of the 2006s finished with around two grams per liter of r.s., which has given the wines a supple, round character. Morey believes they will be for drinking before the 2005s. "The 2006s are a bit fragile, and we will need to be make sure they get the sulfiting they need," he said. Most of the malos were done by the end of April; I tasted entirely from barrels that had finished their secondary fermentations.