2007 Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru

The grapes ripened in the last three weeks of the 2008 growing season, said Vincent Girardin, who started picking on September 24 and had potential alcohols in the lofty 13.3% range. In 2008 he crushed the grapes (previously he fermented with whole clusters), and he began with a higher percentage of solids in the barrel: five liters, compared to two previously. In 2008, he did a total of just three batonnages, "to give the wines more force." Back when he pressed whole clusters, "the juice was primary but fragile. The vendange entier method is good for wines that are consumed young." Girardin says that the 2007s remind him of the 2004s, but noted that as recently as '04 he aged his grand crus entirely in new barrels. Nowadays it's more like 25% for the premier crus and 30% for the grand crus. I have limited my notes on 2008s to wines that had finished-or nearly completed-their malos by the time of my visit. (Vineyard Brands, Birmingham, AL)

Girardin told me he loves the 2004 whites for their outstanding typicity. "The ripest 2007s will be in a similar style," he went on, "but there's the risk that high-yielding parcels will produce wines with a hole in the middle." Girardin picked chardonnay between September 5 and 14 (he began with pinot noir on August 26!) and told me none of the grand crus were chaptalized (they are now carrying 12.8% to 13% alcohol). Many of the 2007s had recently been racked at the time of my visit but were returned to used barrels, as Girardin planned to do a long elevage. "The 2007 grapes were ripe even if they're lower in alcohol than usual," said Girardin, explaining that he's trying to get more complexity through extended aging on the lees. Girardin continues to purchase chardonnay vineyards, having added six hectares of vines in 2007 (he now owns 22). (Vineyard Brands, Birmingham, AL)