2008 Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru

"The 2009s are about sturdiness while the 2008s are about freshness," says Dancer. Climatic conditions in 2009 were like those of 2005, he went on, and he picked early, beginning on September 5, to retain freshness. "I didn't want high alcoholic degrees," Dancer explained, adding that in 2005 he picked some parcels too late and got a more exotic character. In fact, potential alcohols in 2009 were in the healthy but not exaggerated 12.8% to 13.5% range, with the exception of 14.2% for the Chevalier-Montrachet. As I've mentioned in the past, Dancer presses relatively hard and quickly, does no debourbage, and brings fully 12 to 15 liters of "healthy" lees into the barrel. (Since 2004 he has also done a longer elevage, bottling after 18 months without filtration.) He is convinced that this helps him make fresher wines that are more likely to resist early oxidation in bottle. More bourbes may give the wine some vegetal notes, he pointed out, but it also makes for a stronger constitution. "Our wines may taste a bit less good when young but they will age longer," he predicted. Incidentally, Dancer told me that he has replaced some customers' prematurely aged bottles of his 2000s and 1999s with bottles from more recent vintages.

Vincent Dancer started picking in 2008 on September 22, with 13% natural alcohol. "The ripeness was late in 2008, but came quickly at the end," he told me, adding that he was the first to harvest in Chevalier-Montrachet, yet his fruit came in with 14.2% potential alcohol. Dancer describes the wines as less elegant than the 2007s, but I was struck by the strength of material, and expressive soil tones, in the wines from both of these vintages at this address. The alcohols in 2007 were lower, said Dancer, "like the 2000s," but he chaptalized only his Tete du Clos. "I used to try to match the numbers on the labels-13% for the village wines and 13.5% for the crus-but now I usually just leave the wines alone." The 2008 malos had finished a month prior to my visit. Incidentally, Dancer told me that 1999 and 2000 were his problem vintages with premature oxidation, and that since that era he has taken a number of steps to prevent his wines from dying an early death in bottle, including longer elevage, the use of more small doses of SO2 (there were previously just three main additions done), no more filtration for the bottling and different corks. And, since 2004, he has pressed harder and faster. "Previously we started with too-fine lees," he told me. Now Dancer begins with a rather substantial 20 liters of lees per barrel but does not do batonnage.