1997 Morey-Saint-Denis Village

According to estate manager Thierry Brouin, "1995 was a vintage of terroir 1996 of cepage and 1997 of climat." "Nineteen ninety-eight," he added, "offered a perfect combination of cepage and terroir; it's like a cross between 1993 and 1995." We were very worried following the rains of early September, added Brouin, but the wines have turned out to be quite classic in style. No destemming was done following the harvest, and the fruit received a natural five-day cold maceration before the fermentations commenced. Brouin made a point of telling me that the domain cut the price of its '97 more than 20% from '96 (this is a relatively inexpensive grand cru in the first place), making the very good '97 a real bargain in Burgundy terms.

Winemaker Thierry Brouin believes the '97s have gained considerably from levage which he feels has rounded the tannins. "There nothing hard about these wines," notes Brouin. "They will be drinkable within a few years." At the time of my November visit, bottling was projected for January, a good four months earlier than the '96s were bottled. Very little sugar or acid adjustment was needed in '97. ("There was actually far more surmaturite and considerably higher grape sugars, at the end of the '98 harvest," notes Brouin. "Our fruit in 1998 went from 11.9% to 13.4% in six days.") Techniques in '97 included a severe trie less pigeage and a shorter cuvaison.