1997 Chassagne-Montrachet Les Chenevottes

Michel Colin was one of several vignerons in Chassagne-Montrachet who preferred '98 to '97. The wines, he says, show better gras and depth of fruit flavor than those of the previous year. Colin describes his '98s as riper than the '97s (in fact, he likened the '98s to his '92s), though he points out that grape sugars and acids were technically about the same in both '98 and '97. At the time of my visit, the malos were finished and the wines had been sulfited, but had not yet been racked. (Chateau & Estate Wines, New York, NY; Robert Chadderdon Selections, New York, NY; Kermit Lynch, Berkeley, CA)

1997 has produced fruity, supple wines with sound acidity despite low levels of malic acid in the grapes, says Michel Colin. "But this vintage will not be a vin de garde " Because the '97s had a tendency to become reduced after the early malos, Colin had already racked the wines by the time of my visit, though he retained a portion of the fine lees. Colin describes the aromas of his '97s as heavier than those of his '96s; the grapes were even riper in '97, he says, but there was no rot. I found a few of the '97s a bit harsh with alcohol; Colin two great premier crus from Puligny seemed clearly finer than his wines from Chassagne. The '96s here have turned out extremely well. (Chateau & Estate Wines, New York, NY; Robert Chadderdon Selections, New York, NY; Kermit Lynch, Berkeley, CA)