2013 Chassagne-Montrachet La Romanée 1er Cru

"Yields were very small in 2014, similar to the 2013s for the premier crus but a bit more generous for the village wines," said Jean-Pierre Cournut, who believes that 2014 has all the necessary elements to make a great vintage, although it wasn't yet clear to him how well they will communicate their terroir character. But he also very much likes 2013, and for its red wines too. "The 2013 whites show a slight lack of maturity but they are very representative of their terroir," he summarized. "They're a pleasant surprise, because we initially thought we'd have a vintage like 2004. Cournut noted that he essentially stopped stirring his lees in 2009, now doing it "just at the beginning, to make sure the sugars finish fermenting."

Jean-Pierre Cournut picked from September 30 through October 7 in 2013, with potential alcohol levels ranging from 11.4% to 12.8%, but he expressed the opinion that his best wines are from vineyards harvested on the first two days.The 2013s were initially fragile, he told me, "but they're getting good now as the terroir speaks."He considers the '13s to be "very representative of Burgundy," and perhaps more marked by terroir than the very fresh, higher-acid 2010s. Cournut admitted that he likes drinking white Burgundies on the young side.He's enjoying the 2010s today, but feels that the 2012s and most 2011s are closing down now.Cournut told me he has stopped stirring the lees since 2009 and that he's much more precise nowadays when it comes to adding SO2, doing more frequent additions of smaller doses.(I was only able to see a few of the 2012s as Cournut told me that a number of these wines were already sold out.) (Domaines & Saveurs/Jeanne-Marie de Champs; importers include The Wine House Limited, www.winesf.com and Frederick Wildman & Sons, www.frederickwildman.com)