2018 Aloxe-Corton Village

Laurent Fournier is in panic mode! He arrives at his winery where I've been waiting for our appointment, Fournier having completely forgotten until a phone call interrupted lunch with his importer. No worries. It happens to us all, especially me. But I am grateful that we did manage to sneak in a hasty tasting of his reds as this is one of the best producers in Marsannay. I did not have time to taste the whites. For his reds he mostly uses 50% whole bunch, 50% de-stemmed, and ageing 50% in pièces and 50% demi-muids, utilising a modest 30% new oak and in recent years aiming for a slightly shorter élevage than before. Fournier commenced picking on 3 September and told me that most of his cuvees are between 13.2% and 13.9% alcohol. "It was an easy vintage with no problems," Fournier told me.