2007 Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru

After doing no batonnage for the 2006s, winemaker Jerome Faure-Brac stirred the lees of the 2007s every three weeks until the end of the malolactic fermentations. Still, he described the finished 2007s as crystalline, taut, very pure wines. Faure-Brac wasn't yet quite sure what to make of the 2008 whites. "They're certainly showing their new oak now; due to the level of acidity in the wines, one feels the sap of the wood," he told me. "The wines are very tasty today but will that character remain? Will the wines stay fresh? My question about 2008 has to do with pH and longevity. The pHs are surprisingly high considering the high levels of acidity." My early impression is that the 2008s here have more volume than the Drouhin 2007s but perhaps less tension. Grape sugars in Drouhin's estate wines were typically 13% or even higher, and no chaptalization was done. At the time of my visit most of the final blends had been made, but a few '08s (particularly the Corton-Charlemagne and Montrachet) had not yet finished their malos.

The 2007 growing season began early, noted Philippe Drouhin, and the veraison took place during humid August weather. As the grapes were already rich in sugar by then, this turn of events left them vulnerable to rot. In general, spots that went through veraison later produced healthier fruit, he added. Drouhin considers the quality of the '07 whites to be more heterogeneous than that of the 2004s, which he felt were more fruity and aromatic at the same stage of their development. Some '07s, he believed, were a bit flat following their malolactic fermentations, even if acidity levels are average. Drouhin describes the family's 2006 whites as "very ripe but with good acid behind them," while Frederic Drouhin referred to the wines as "charming, with sweet flavors that can be enjoyed on the young side-the reds too!"