2013 Blanc Morey Saint-Denis En La Rue Vergy

It's always a pleasure to sit down and taste with Bruno Clair and his longtime winemaker, Philippe Brun, both of whom are a treasure trove of experience and knowledge. Clair brought in his fruit beginning on October 7, which only has parallels in the estate's recent history with 1978 and 1980, where the harvests started on October 10 and 12. It's true that 2008 was almost as late as 2013, except that in 2013 the last few days of ripening did not add a meaningful amount of concentration as they did in 2008. Clair adds that sugars alone are not a measure of quality, as evidenced by the 1991s, many of which are more complete than their 1990 counterparts. Of course, the issue with any late-ripening year is that the days are shorter as the season progresses, so there are meaningful differences between the heat of August and that of September. As if the bad flowering and early start to the year was not enough, Clair's vineyards in Savigny-les-Beaune and Pernand-Vergelesses were all damaged by hail. According to Clair, the Charlemagne was more skin than juice, clearly a far from favorable situation. I tasted the 2013s from barrel, after they had been racked. Where the wines don't carry the signatures of hail they are quite pretty. Philippe Brun adds that while the terroirs are well marked in 2013, the wines should be enjoyed before the 2012s.

It's always a pleasure to sit down and taste with Bruno Clair and his longtime winemaker, Philippe Brun, both of whom are a treasure trove of experience and knowledge. Clair brought in his fruit beginning on October 7, which only has parallels in the estate's recent history with 1978 and 1980, where the harvests started on October 10 and 12. It's true that 2008 was almost as late as 2013, except that in 2013 the last few days of ripening did not add a meaningful amount of concentration as they did in 2008. Clair adds that sugars alone are not a measure of quality, as evidenced by the 1991s, many of which are more complete than their 1990 counterparts. Of course, the issue with any late-ripening year is that the days are shorter as the season progresses, so there are meaningful differences between the heat of August and that of September. As if the bad flowering and early start to the year was not enough, Clair's vineyards in Savigny-les-Beaune and Pernand-Vergelesses were all damaged by hail. According to Clair, the Charlemagne was more skin than juice, clearly a far from favorable situation. I tasted the 2013s from barrel, after they had been racked. Where the wines don't carry the signatures of hail they are quite pretty. Philippe Brun adds that while the terroirs are well marked in 2013, the wines should be enjoyed before the 2012s.