2009 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.