2011 Meursault Clousots

The 2012s were higher in alcohol and acidity than he would have thought at harvest time, so Patrick Javillier did very little batonnage. "The wines already had a lot of material and I didn't want to risk having lees in suspension," he told me. Javillier prepared representative samples of 2012 a few days in advance of my visit "to let the various components meld," but for comparison purposes we also tasted most of the same cuvees directly from a single barrel. Javillier's 2011s, from a harvest he began on August 23, his earliest start ever, have turned out well. "The surprise is that they really taste like wines from fruit that was picked a month later." Javillier also told me me that he picked his 2010s too late, with too much potential alcohol and evidence of surmaturite. "Two thousand ten is not my classic style; they're almost Alsace-like," said Javillier, who normally vinifies for aromatic complexity and precision. (A Peter Vezan selection, www.vezanwine.wordpress.com; imported by The Wine Company, www.thewinecompany.net; also imported by Martin-Scott Wines, Ltd., www.martinscottwines.com)

"Two thousand ten may be better than 2011, but 2011 is more my style," Patrick Javillier announced at the beginning of our tasting. His opinion may have been formed by his choice of picking dates. "Two thousand ten isn't quite my style for Meursault," he explained. "They have a great balance of acid and pH but the alcohols were 13.7% or 13.8%." He thinks he picked two or three days later than ideal and noted that there was some thunder on those days, which can have a deleterious effect on the grape skins. "I did very little batonnage with the 2010s and now I am very content, as the wines are very fresh." Javillier picked very early in 2011, beginning on August 23, stopping for a day, and then starting up again on the 25th. "There was some surmaturite but at low alcohol levels, around 12%," he said. "The early fruit was very clean but the stuff that came in at the end had less pure aromas." Javillier describes 2011 as a classic style despite the early harvest. "The 2011s taste like they were picked a month later than they actually were." (A Peter Vezan selection, www.vezanwine.wordpress.com; imported by The Wine Company, www.thewinecompany.net; also imported by Martin-Scott Wines, Ltd., www.martinscottwines.com)