2007 Vosne-Romanee 1er Cru

I tasted in November with Bernard's wife Martine, as Bernard was in the hospital recovering from surgery. According to Martine, the 2008 harvest was late, taking place from September 25 to October 12, but the wines had nonetheless been moved into cuves before the harvest of 2009. Madame Gros noted that "by using our concentrator, there was a risk of concentrating the wines' acids." I would describe what I found as more of a dry edge than obviously elevated acidity. Of course, these wines will also carry a relatively high 13.5% to 14% alcohol into the bottle. Gros had to subject his 2007s to a more stringent filtration than either the 2006s or 2005s as the wines were not as clear. (A Patrick Lesec Selection; importers include Classic Wine Imports, Boston, MA; Noble House, New York, NY) Also recommended: Vosne-Romanee (85). Other wines tasted: Hautes Cotes de Nuits.

Bernard Gros described 2007 as "a very good, very ripe vintage," which suggests that he made less use of his evaporator to remove water and concentrate his musts. These wines are concentrated and rich, but at the time of my visit there was a heaviness to a few of them that is not what I look for in Burgundy-as was the case with a few of the finished 2006s. Obviously, high pHs here have a lot to do with the mouth feel of these wines: Gros said 3.85 was typical in 2007, while the 2006s finished between 3.7 and 3.75. (A Patrick Lesec Selection; importers include Classic Wine Imports, Boston, MA; Fine Vines LLC, Melrose Park, IL; Noble House, New York, NY; also imported by Atherton Wine Imports, Atherton, CA) Also recommended: Vosne-Romanee 1er Cru (86).