1999 Vosne-Romanée Aux Reignots 1er Cru

"Nicely balanced wines that are full of fruit; between '97 and '99 in style," is the way Pascal Lachaux describes his 2000s. "They don't have quite the concentration of the '99s but possess more acidity and fresher aromas than the '97s. They'll be accessible early but should also age reasonably well." Interestingly, Lachaux noted that he used very low levels of SO2 after the first racking in April, and that the young 2000s were eating the sulfur very slowly, which he took as a positive sign for their future development. Lachaux uses 100% new oak for his Vosne-Romanee Reignots and Suchots and his three grand crus. (Represented by Russell Herman, Berkeley Heights, NJ; importers include V.O.S. Selections, Inc., New York, NJ; also a Peter Vezan Selection, imported by Esquin Imports, San Anselmo, CA; The Stacole Co., Boca Raton, FL; and Import!, Madison, WI)

Pascal Lachaux admitted making close to the full allowable yields in most of his parcels in 1999, but says he began with good sugars (typically 11.5% to 12%) and healthy pHs similar to those of the previous year. He carried out a long cold maceration at 5oC ("we don't have to worry about thermic shock when the juice still has its sugar," he noted), and then was able to avoid strenuous pigeage "because all the elements were in the thick skins of the '99 grapes, and came easily." (Compared to '96, for example, there were more clusters in 1999, but smaller grapes, Lachaux added). Lachaux did a long debourbage to eliminate all but the fine lees and had not yet racked a number of the wines a year later. At the time of my visit, he planned to rack and assemble the '99s before Christmas in advance of a January bottling. The '98s were bottled last January without fining or filtration. (Represented by Russell Herman, Berkeley Heights, NJ; importers include V.O.S. Selections, Inc., New York, NJ; also a Peter Vezan Selection, imported by Esquin Imports, San Anselmo, CA; The Stacole Co., Boca Raton, FL; and Import!, Madison, WI)