2012 Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru

CEO/superconsultant Bernard Hervet told me that the 2013s "have the pHs and acidity of the 2008s but the aromas of the 2007s."He pointed out that although they are showing well early, they will still require a relatively long elevage, as the '08s did."They're still marked by the cold, acid vintage, and they will need a few years in bottle to show more complexity."Hervet believes that this will be a vintage more for connoisseurs and Burgundy lovers than for the broader market.I have provided notes on the 2013 Cote de Beaune wines that had finished their malolactic fermentations by the time of my visit at the beginning of June; a few cuvees had barely started. Also recommended:2012 Meursault Blagny (86).

"The 2012s have healthy pHs but the wines are very rich," said CEO/adviser Bernard Hervet."We want to give them more energy; they need tension."At the time of my visit at the beginning of June, Hervet planned to rack many of these wines into stainless steel "to re-establish their tension and minerality."Because the wines took up oak quickly, he also wanted to get them out of barrels before the heat of summer in an attempt to gain finesse.Incidentally, Hervet believes that dry extract levels in the 2012s are the highest since the 2005 vintage.But despite the strength of the raw material, he emphasized that "20 hectoliters per hectare is not the best balance for white wines."