2011 Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru

As a rule, the middle strip of the hillsides was favored in 2012, said Gerard Boudot, while the ripeness of the higher parcels tended to be more affected by hail stress."The wines from the high slopes are less easy to taste today," he added.Crop levels for certain wines were infinitesimal.For example, Boudot made just 100 liters of wine from his vines in Hameau de Blagny ("this was the epicenter of the August 1 hail") and this juice went into his village Puligny.Based on my side-by-side tasting of 2012 and 2011 chez Boudot, this estate had great success in 2011.Alcohol levels in '11 were about 0.3% lower across the board than in 2010 but with similar phenolic maturity, Boudot explained, adding that the combination of ripe grapes and low pHs was very rare.He did not chaptalize his 2011."This is a vintage to enjoy at all stages of its evolution--and certainly to start drinking before the 2010s," noted Boudot.

This is a fabulous set of wines from Sauzet. The harvest started on August 29, and the wines came in between 12.5-13.0% alcohol, which meant none of the tanks were chaptalized. The 2011s spent 12 months in oak (15-30% new) followed by six months in steel. Winemaker Benoit Riffault was admirably candid in explaining that he modified the timing of sulfur additions in 2011 after the experience of 2010, where some of the wines were quite awkward at the same stage in their lives.

Yields in 2011 were average, and smaller than those of 2009, said Gerard Boudot."Of course we had a much larger crop than in 2010 thanks to the superb flowering," he addied.Potential alcohol levels were in the 12.5% range, and all but the top crus were chaptalized lightly.At the time of my visit, Boudot had not yet stirred the lees; in 2010, he did only two or three batonnages for each cuvee.Similarly, Boudot has been slowly reducing his use of new oak in recent years.He now uses just 20% to 25% for most of his premier crus (the Combettes gets 33%), compared to 33% to 40% in the late '90s.Boudot is convinced that biodynamic farming has enabled him to get more aromatic precision in his wines, especially in his Bienvenue-Batard and Batard."Now the differences between these wines are accentuated," he told me, "despite the fact that the vines are not far from each other."