2000 Riesling Brand Vieilles Vignes Vendanges Tardives

In the end, Olivier Humbrecht told me in early May, 2000 is a very good year but with the potential drawbacks of a hot, precocious growing season. "There was no problem getting high grape sugars, especially after great weather in early September," said Humbrecht, "but there were problems of early rot, high yields in some sites, and lack of acidity and structure. There was too much rain in October 2000 and we were constantly afraid of losing necessary acidity. We had to fight constantly against overripeness, and October was a tricky month that required careful picking. On the other hand," Humbrecht added, "with their powerful fruit and lower acidity levels, these wines can handle their higher alcohol." "Only classic dry botrytis really concentrates acids as well as sugars," noted Humbrecht, "as in the case of Rangen riesling in 1998, or as in '89. We can't really compare 2000 to 1989, as some have done, because in 1989 it was dry from the first of September to the first of November. So during the harvest of 2000, we had to keep telling our harvesters not to be too dramatic; we told them that they should also pick some healthy berries, not just those affected by noble rot." In contrast to 2000, '99 was a very long harvest, stretching from September 24 until November 20, with little botrytis. "But we only picked on 16 of those days," Humbrecht noted. "This vintage is conducive to wines with some residual sugar, because the acids were quite firm, as high as those of '96 in some cases." Interestingly, Humbrecht was the only grower I visited who told me his yields were lower in '99 than in '00: 35 hectoliters on average in 1999, vs. 40 in 2000, and just 22 h/h for the grand crus in '99. The extra degree of concentration is most obvious in the '99 gewurztraminers, which are unusually strong but also strikingly elegant in the context of this vintage. But the 2000 gewurztraminers, with alcohol levels beginning at 15.5%, are a whole other thing: powerful and extremely aromatic, yet almost magically balanced.