2004 Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Pruliers 1er Cru

"Two thousand five was a year of nature," said Vincent Lecheneaut. "Very little intervention was needed. The grapes came in cool, the fermentations took a week to start, and the fermentation temperatures climbed very slowly. All of this is ideal for us." The fruit came in with potential alcohol between 12% and 12.5% and the Lecheneaut brothers chaptalized a bit just to further extend the fermentations. None of the 2005s were racked, and a few still had a bit of remaining malic acidity at the time of my visit. This may explain why these wines seemed quite primary in character, even a bit stunted, but they did not appear to be overextracted. Most of the village wines also showed varying degrees of vanillin oak; time will tell whether they become more refined during the final months of elevage. (Robert Kacher Selections, Washington, D.C.) Also recommended: Morey-Saint-Denis (85), Nuits-Saint-Georges (86).

The Lecheneaut brothers began the 2004 harvest on September 24, bringing in fruit with sugars between 12% and 12. 5%, a level of ripeness they described as higher than that of 2002. Philippe Lecheneaut believes that the 2004s can be compared to the 2001s, but that the new vintage is less austere. He noted that there were 18 separate vineyard treatments during the growing season due to oidium, extending unusually deep into the summer. In 2003, the Lecheneauts harvested comparatively late, beginning on August 29, yet their top wines show more lift than most. (Robert Kacher Selections, Washington, D. C. )