2021 Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru

Claude de Nicolay, who runs this Savigny estate with her brother François, guides me through their 2021s. “We lost a lot of Savigny and Pernand-Vergelesses,” she tells me, “around 75% of the crop. So, we averaged 15hl/ha but 30hl/hl in Corton that was pruned later, and the canes had not laid down. Also, Savigny and Pernand suffered more mildew pressure. The 501 silica helped the leaves to keep photosynthesizing which helped the berries to ripen – alcohol levels between 12.5 and 13.0%. There wasn’t too much acidity. We started picking the whites on 16 September and finished two days later, starting with the reds on 21 September until 27 September. The sorting took a long time. The skins were thin, so we did not have to extract too much. We still used whole bunches: 50% for the Savigny and Pernand-Vergelesses and 80% for the Grand Crus. We also had to be careful during the pigeage to maintain elegance and avoid dry tannins. We did a shorter maceration, two instead of three weeks. We are more than proud of the results of our 2021s, especially the balance. They evolved very well in barrel, and there is no chaptalisation. We used slightly less new oak (10%) compared to other years.”