2010 Nuits Saint-Georges Les Pruliers 1er Cru

I have to say, this is a stunning set of wines from Denis and Bertrand Chevillon. The Chevillons told me they were surprised by the quality of the wines given the challenges of the growing season. The 2010s saw 5-10 days of cold soak, followed by 15-21 days of cuvaison. The wines were aged on their lees in French oak barrels, 30% new for the top wines and less for the mid- and entry-level wines. The 2010s will be bottled beginning in March 2012 through July 2012. Unfortunately, the 2009s were in an awkward stage on my last visit, so I had to wait a few more months to taste those wines. It was worth the wait. Chevillon's 2009s are among the wines of the vintage. The 2009s were bottled beginning February (for the entry-level wines) through April for the top selections. I will report on the domaine's 2009s in my April article.

The Chevillon family has another pure, scented collection of Nuits-Saint-Georges premier crus in the works--most of which should offer relatively early appeal but also age very well. The harvest took place between September 23 and 29 with potential alcohols levels in the moderate 12% to 12.5% range and, according to Bertrand Chevillon, none of the finished wines will be above 13% alcohol. The 2010s finished their malolactic fermentations in the spring and were racked in July--a bit later than usual.