2014 Puligny-Montrachet Village

Drouhin’s Beaune Clos des Mouches was decimated by hail in 2014, but production elsewhere, except in parts of Meursault, was nearly normal, said Frederic Drouhin. Following late malolactic fermentations, the ‘14s were bottled last fall and this spring. Acidity levels range between 3.8 and 4.3 grams per liter. Drouhin aged their premier crus in about 30% new oak.

The Drouhin family made just 5% of their normal production in Beaune Clos des Mouches in 2013 and barely more in 2014. But Philippe Drouhin noted that 2014 was back to a more normal crop except for Volnay, Pommard, Beaune and parts of Meursault. It was also homogeneous in quality. “Higher than normal acidity gives the wines tension and freshness, which people like,” he told me. “We won't be criticized this year for having flabby wines.”

The malolactic fermentations generally finished on the late side; all were done by the time of my late-spring visit but some had finished recently. The wines had been recently racked and sulfured. Overall, alcohol levels in the finished wines will be around 13%, noted Drouhin, adding that some cuvées were chaptalized. “Two thousand fourteen is an academic vintage for learning about Burgundy,” he summarized. “The wines are very precise to their terroirs.”

Philippe noted that winemaker Jérôme Faure-Brac is now skipping the earliest racking in barrel and doing much less batonnage. All of the 2014s are aging in 30% to 40% new oak but Philippe believes that there's better integration of the wood these days, thanks in part to a better selection of forests and three years of drying, with light toasting. Most of the barrels come from François Frères.