2006 Chambolle-Musigny Premier Cru

"The 2007 growing season began with a hot April and a long flowering lasting almost three weeks," said Alain Meunier. "We found the same differences at harvest time, even within the same parcels, and we picked some of our parcels in passes. We actually started the harvest on August 28 and 29 in Nuits-Saint-Georges Boudots, Clos Vougeot and Cote de Nuits-Villages, then stopped for five or six days before picking again from September 5 through 8, and then again on September 11 and 12." Not surprisingly, Meunier told me he eliminated both rotten and underripe grapes. The Clos Vougeot and Boudots were not chaptalized, added Meunier, but some of the wines were chaptalized as much as 1.5 degrees. And the development of the wines in barrel was also irregular, as some of the malos here finished before Christmas but others occurred in May. Meunier describes the 2007s as having fat tannins and low acidity. Two thousand six yielded firmer wines here; with their lower pHs, they convey more flavor authority.

"Two thousand six gave me a lot of satisfaction, especially considering the conditions of August and the state of the harvest," was the first thing Alain Meunier told me about this vintage. "We had good phenolic material and ripeness of sugars, but we threw away up to 35% of our grapes, during a late-August sorting in the vines, another one at the harvest, and then again on a table de trie." In contrast to many of his colleagues, Meunier told me that he had less rot in 2007; the major challenge in '07, he said, was uneven ripening. Meunier did very little pigeage in 2006 "due to the sanitary state of the vintage," and no chaptalization, as potential alcohol levels ranged from 12.9% to 13.5%. "The wines are ripe, and the acidity is correct, but the wines are on the tender side, with pHs a bit higher than the 2005s." Meunier predicts that 2006 will be a "medium-term ager: more than 2004 but less than 2005. And they'll be much more presentable young than 2005, which is closed and severe now."

"Two thousand six gave me a lot of satisfaction, especially considering the conditions of August and the state of the harvest," was the first thing Alain Meunier told me about this vintage. "We had good phenolic material and ripeness of sugars, but we threw away up to 35% of our grapes, during a late-August sorting in the vines, another one at the harvest, and then again on a table de trie." In contrast to many of his colleagues, Meunier told me that he had less rot in 2007; the major challenge in '07, he said, was uneven ripening. Meunier did very little pigeage in 2006 "due to the sanitary state of the vintage," and no chaptalization, as potential alcohol levels ranged from 12.9% to 13.5%. "The wines are ripe, and the acidity is correct, but the wines are on the tender side, with pHs a bit higher than the 2005s." Meunier predicts that 2006 will be a "medium-term ager: more than 2004 but less than 2005. And they'll be much more presentable young than 2005, which is closed and severe now."