2006 Echézeaux Grand Cru

"The 2007 vintage is about fruit and elegance," said Regis Forey, who told me he picked very late and did almost no chaptalization. "It would have been a shame to use techniques that risked losing the fruit." Still, Forey admitted to having stirred the lees in most of his barrels three or four times after the malolactic fermentations, which finished early here, in December or January. Forey's 2006s are a bit less stuffed than his '05s, but there's not a big difference between the two vintages in terms of structure. These wines got considerably more lees stirring than the '07s, because Forey felt they needed more fat. They will require longer aging than the '07s.

Regis Forey clearly prefers 2006 to the fruitier 2007 vintage for its greater structure, flesh and power. Still, he admits, "it was necessary to do your work in the vines in 2006." Forey removed some leaves in late July, and he believes that this step helps explain why he had very little rot at harvest time. Ultimately he brought in an average yield, and most of his cuvees were not chaptalized. "It's a classic pinot vintage with good normal acidity. The tannins are not green-peppery like the '04s. And because the tannins are not big, the wines will be approachable fairly quickly." Following late malos, none of the wines had been racked in November. Incidentally, Forey told me he did three or four batonnages, with the last one taking place in September. He does this to "soften and enrobe" his wines, but is careful not to do so much lees stirring that he risks oxidizing them.