2017 Clos de la Roche Grand Cru

Cyprien Arlaud has really taken this domaine to new levels in recent years. He is one of the most dedicated practitioners of biodynamics in the vineyard, despite the traumas of frost, hail and mildew in recent years. “I did some whole bunch on the Grand Crus and Premier Crus, but not the Villages,” Cyprien Arlaud told me as I took a pew in his tasting room. “The maximum was 30%, around the same as last year. We started the harvest on September 6 and finished around 10 days later. The picking was fairly easy. I had to adapt the picking because it was all about the yields. I did a green harvest in July for the Grand Cru and Premier Cru and the Chambolle-Musigny Village, which was severely affected by the frost in 2016. It was strange to go in the vineyard and take off bunches and accept that the growing season was generous. I was looking for depth and body in the wines, so I had to convince my staff to leave earlier for vacation and come back mid-August in order to do the green harvest. I cut and analyzed the grapes and when I did that, I could see they were close to phenolic ripeness. It is true that the vintage could have accepted a higher yield, but in the end, we cropped at around 40hl/ha. The natural alcohol level is around 13° for some Premier Crus, which is not too high. I chaptalised for just a few wines including the Village Crus.” Arlaud’s wines tend to veer towards the blacker side of the fruit spectrum rather than red, feeling quite dense in their youth and demanding bottle age. The standout this year is the Clos de la Roche, but there are plenty of other fine crus in 2017, especially among the cluster of Morey-Saint-Denis Premier Crus, where the Les Ruchots really stands out.