2001 Le Montrachet

The 2002s are both fatter and more structured than the 2001s," Guy Amiot told me at the end of May, "with at least as much acidity. One important difference is that we made 20% less wine in 2002. Grape sugars for the premier crus were in the 13.3% to 13.8% range, about a half-degree higher than the 2001s." (Later in our tasting, Amiot described his young 2002s as a bit like his '89s but with more acidity.) Amiot and his son Thierry, who has been in charge of the vines and the vinification for the past three years, stirred the lees every ten days or so until the end of the malolactic fermentations. At the time of my visit, they planned to rack the wines at the end of June, fine them in mid-July, and bottle at the end of August, though it's possible that they found it necessary to move up the bottling dates. Amiot noted that the estate does not exceed 25% to 30% new oak for its premier crus and will probably cut the percentage to 20% in the near future. (Kermit Lynch, Berkeley, CA; also Domaines et Saveurs/Jeanne-Marie de Champs; importers include Boston Wine Company, Boston, MA; the Country Vintner, Oilville, VA; and Margaux Imports, Ft. Lauderdale, FL)

Guy Amiot describes his young 2001s as more expressive, more immediately pleasing, than his 2000s, which he says are more classic white Burgundies in need of bottle aging. The 2000s are rich, balanced, more robust wines," he added. Amiot son Thierry, in charge of the vinification since the 2000 harvest, has instituted a longer elevage As a result, the 2001s were only partly through their malolactic fermentations at the end of May in the Amiots' cool cave and there were no plans to rack the wines until August or September. At the time of my visit, the Amiots were still stirring the lees. The 2000s, incidentally, were bottled last November and December, the first time the wines had been bottled that late. Son Thierry has also begun to do a stricter de-budding to bring down crop yields. (Kermit Lynch, Berkeley, CA; also Domaines et Saveurs/Jeanne-Marie de Champs; importers include Boston Wine Company, Boston, MA; the Country Vintner, Oilville, VA; and Margaux Imports, Ft. Lauderdale, FL)