2021 Musigny Grand Cru

Erwan Faiveley is on hand to guide me through a selection of mainly Domaine wines on another foggy November morning. Even a major player like Faiveley could not escape the hardships of the growing season. “For the Côte de Beaune whites, we used a lot of candles when the frost came,” he explains. “Bienvenues and Bâtard-Montrachet were nicely protected, whereas Puligny Champs Gain and Corton-Charlemagne were almost completely destroyed. We produced just three cases from [Puligny] La Garenne. Technically, we started the harvest on Monday, 20 September. But there was heavy rain, so we sent the harvesters home at 7am and began the following day. It was strange - the weather conditions were poor at first, but there was bright sunshine at the end. Without that 30mm on 20 September, I think the vintage would have been a little more concentrated in the vineyard, such as Clos Vougeot. The reds are de-stemmed, although we used some stems in Chambolle Musigny, Echézeaux and some vats of our Mercurey Framboisière. I am glad I did not push the vendange entire [whole bunch] - it’s not that kind of vintage. There was a thin line between lifting and spoiling the wine through stem addition, and it was more challenging to add them in the Cote de Beaune.”

This is a commendable set of wines that do not disguise the ups and downs of the challenging growing season. Certainly, the Musigny is majestic, transcending the vintage to a point where I remarked to Faiveley that it seems to operate on a different level to its fellow Grand Crus. This might be attributed to being fermented in a smaller vessel, unlike others in larger vats. Apropos the whites, I am smitten by the Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet that outshines the Bâtard and frost-depleted Corton-Charlemagne.