1996 Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru

Since the early 1990s, Mortet has become a Gevrey superstar following extensive work in the vineyards aimed at cutting yields and getting riper fruit earlier. Mortet says he was among the earlier harvesters in Gevrey in '97 yet still had grape sugars so high that he did not have to chaptalize three quarters of his cuves At the level of the crus, yields were in the very low 25 to 32 hectoliters per hectare range. Mortet admits to having done some acidification at the beginning of cuvaison but says that, in general, the coloring matter, tannins and texture of the '97s compensated for any dearth of acidity. As Mortet was in a position to control the temperature of his cuverie for the first time in '97, he was thus able to do five to seven days of cold maceration prior to the onset of fermentation. Still, the wines appeared a bit meager and light in color after they were removed from the vats, and Mortet feels they have benefitted immensely by being aged on as much of the lees as possible. For the first time, Mortet used only barrels from Francois Freres for his '97s, and he continues to increase the percentage of Troncais oak. In this very cold cellar, the '97s were in the process of going into a shell in late January and thus were a challenge to taste. But they are impressive.

Mortet cellar expansion was finished in time for the '96 vintage, and quality continues to improve as work in the vines results in better primary material. Beginning with the '95 vintage, Mortet has used 100% new oak in all his wines beginning with the Gevrey villages But a key difference between 1995 and 1996 involves the quality of oak. Mortet prefers Troncais barrels, especially those made by Francois Freres, and pointed out that his 1995 Clos Vougeot and Chambertin would have been even better had they received a higher percentage of Troncais(the '95 Champeaux, by the way, featured the highest percentage of this type of oak). As with his '93s and '95s, Mortet will leave his '96s on their lees until just before the mise in April. Like his neighbor Charles Rousseau, Mortet reports that 1996 brought large grapes and thick skins. This vintage, he adds, was higher in sugars and acids than 1995. But the earlier vintage has turned out extremely well.