2006 Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru Vieilles Vignes

Hubert Lignier, who has have built a new vinification facility following the division of vineyards with Hubert's estranged daughter-in-law Kellen, picked his estate vines on the late side, between September 5 and 12, with potential alcohols in the healthy 12.5% to 13% range. Hubert, joined in the venture by his son Laurent, describes the 2007s as "fruity wines but with only moderate structure." After temporarily losing control over most of his property in the 2006 growing season (Kellen's team farmed the vines, and Kellen vinified most of the wines), Lignier worked his share of the estate parcels from which he made the 2007s reviewed below. As I noted last year, his new company allows Lignier to supplement his production with a small negociant business.

The Lignier family saga shows no sign of having reached a satisfactory resolution, and at the moment the wines from this domain in Morey-Saint-Denis are being bottled under two labels: Lignier Pere et Fils (a new name that allows Hubert to supplement his production with a small negociant business), and Domaine Lucie et Auguste Lignier, the new label of Kellen Lignier, the American widow of Hubert's late son Romain. Hubert Lignier essentially vinified the 2005s (Romain died in the fall of 2004) but daughter-in-law Kellen bottled her share of the wine while Hubert bottled his; the two sets of wines are in the market under their respective labels. Kellen's team farmed the estate vineyards in 2006 and she vinified most of the wines, with Hubert taking his share in wine-except for the Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru Vieilles Vignes and Clos de la Roche. He took the fruit from these vineyards at harvest time and vinified these two wines in the cellar under his home. As Hubert is a talented and confident winemaker with a track record for excellence stretching back decades, it was hardly surprising that these wines were far and away the most promising '06s Lignier showed me in November, along with an Hospices de Nuits Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Didiers, which he purchased at auction.