2006 Gevrey Chambertin Bel-Air

Negociant Pacalet, whose malolactic fermentations typically finish early because he does not use sulfur, rolled his barrels on three different occasions to stir the lees without introducing oxygen, with the objective of prolonging the elevage to give the wines more fat to support their tannins. My tasting in November was a bit tricky as the wines were cloudy following the most recent rolling two weeks before my visit. Interestingly, Pacalet finds the 2007s to be more structured than the 2006s, which he describes as more immediate, "with a lot of old-fashioned wild strawberry eau de vie character." Pacalet mentioned that Japan is his most important export market, followed by Brazil, and that he sells more wine in Italy than in France. As I noted in Issue 137, Pacalet works mostly with low-yielding old pinot fin vines planted in the 1950s and 1960s, and vinifies with whole clusters and wild yeasts.

Negociant Pacalet, who made 95 barrels of red wine in 2006, works mostly with low-yielding old pinot fin vines planted in the 1950s and 1960s. He also harvested very late in 2006, beginning on September 28. Pacalet works entirely with whole clusters and wild yeasts. He carried out a cool pre-fermentation maceration, doing two pigeages per day. "With stems, the temperature mounts slowly, and the peak temperature of the fermentation in 2006 was typically between 29oC and 32oC, depending on the cuvee," he said. Pacalet uses barely 15% to 20% new oak for elevage, avoids pumping his wines, and bottles by hand, normally without filtering. Although Pacalet knows exactly what he's after, he's far from dogmatic about his methods, and he's quick to point out that others take different approaches. For example, he's aware that many winemakers do not consider stems to be "part of the grapes," but he clearly believes that they contribute an important tannic element to his wines. And he's also quite democratic about consumers' varying tastes in Burgundy. On the other hand, he adds, "the worst thing is when a winemaker makes wine to suit the market's taste." Pacalet certainly has the courage of his own convictions. As Pacalet's 2005s sold out quickly, I was only able to see a few examples; he bottled this vintage three months earlier than usual to preserve the fruit. "The sun was the real danger to the finesse of the pinot in 2005," he told me, making it clear that he prefers "a balance between sun and minerality. Vintages like 1998 and 1978 gave a perfect balance; 2006 is not bad either." Pacalet describes the phenolic maturity in 2006 as better than that of 2002. "It was too cold and rainy during both the 2002 and 2001 harvests," he said.