1999 Hermitage

Sorrel likes the '99 whites for their richness and fresh acidity; potential alcohol levels exceeded 14% for the first time. As to the reds, Sorrel views '99 as good, but not up to the quality of '98, which featured stronger material. (But he was already quite excited about the new 2000 vintage, which he said was potentially in the class of '98.) The style here has changed in the direction of suppler texture in the past couple of years: Sorrel destemmed half his fruit following the '98 harvest, then destemmed completely in '99. He made it clear that he plans to continue destemming most or all of his fruit, as this practice is resulting in wines with greater early appeal.