2020 Chambolle-Musigny Village

Sylvie Poillot welcomed me as usual at Domaine de la Vougeraie, up in the village of Prémeaux-Prissey. “We started picking on August 19 with the Pommard Les Petits Noizons, then the Corton Clos-de-Roi, then the Beaune Premier Crus," she explained, pouring the wines. “The whites were picked three days later. We finished the harvest on September 5 in the Hautes-Côtes de Nuits. The average yield is 31.31hl/ha, some cuvées less than 2019 and some more. This year we have new vineyards in Chassagne-Montrachet that used to belong to Duc de Magenta, so we are converting them to organic and biodynamic. They will enter the portfolio in 2021, making around 52 hectares of vineyard. The maximum alcohol was in Charmes-Chambertin Les Mazoyères, at 13.0°, with a pH around 3.30. Nothing is bottled apart from the Terres de Famille. The fermentation was normal, with some racking for the Village Crus." Poillot was very enthusiastic about their set of 2020s, which includes some thrilling wines. The whites are crowned by a wonderful Bienvenue-Bâtard-Montrachet that had the temerity to put the Chevalier in its place. There are also some hidden gems, like the 2020 Beaune Montagne St. Désirée. No, I'm not familiar with this climat either, but this bottling from a parcel previously owned by Alex Gambal was a delight. There were a handful of wines that could have used more tension on the finish, including the aforementioned Chevalier-Montrachet, while the whole-bunch addition to the Musigny was yet to decide to what degree it will be assimilated, still masking some of the DNA of its terroir more than others at present. These wines are bottled under natural cork, which Poillot told me are individually tested by the manufacturer.