2009 Gevrey-Chambertin Craipillot 1er Cru

Because of the considerable percentage of old vines here, yields in 2009 were only about 10% higher than normal, and rarely higher than 35 hectoliters per hectare, said Yves Confuron, who also makes the wines at Domaine de Courcel in Pommard. The harvest was very late, beginning on September 24, and the wines are generally high in pH and alcohol. Many of them show a distinct chocolatey character, but at the level of the top crus these are among the creamiest wines I tasted on my November tour. One key to the style here is the long elevage Confuron gives his wines: as he describes it, he goes "past the primary fruit stage." Nothing had been racked with the exception of the Pommard. Confuron uses roughly 20% new oak for all his cuvees.