2012 Burgundy

WINE TALK
41

With the current generation having all been to viticulture or wine school and a trend towards a warmer average growing season, I think we are past the era of “good” or “bad” vintages as Berry says. I have heard some horror stories of the streets of Beaune being covered in the blue dust of Botrytis spores because bunches were thrown into vats unsorted in the bad old days. No wonder there were “bad” vintages. Remember the sorting table was only recently embraced in Burgundy.

The good thing from a Burgundy lover (rather than producer) is one doesn’t need to chase vintages any more, another one is coming next year if the vintage character is not for your palate.

42

Yeah, I agree. A few producers that used to be on my “must buy” list have risen above my comfort level and it seems like they are going to stay there

43

I just liked when vintage pricing would go up and down. I enjoy that the pricing for 06-08 is affordable, but I wonder if 2011/2012 will drop below 2010 pricing? or will the argument that “there are low yields” keep price high.

44

Prices will keep going up I am afraid. The Côte d’Or is such a small area compared to other great wine making regions. Within a mile you go from Romanée-Conti to wheat fields, there is only so much supply. With more people getting into Burgundy, especially since it is more “reliable” than in the past, there is only one direction prices can go.

As I am sure Ray will attest, the prices for fruit is going up on our side (2011 was up on 2010 which was up on 2009) and I am not looking forward to the rates that will be agreed to in the BIVB negotiations with the cost of sprays this year and the tiny yield.

45

As always with Burgundy, unless it’s universally hailed as a superb vintage, it’s try-before-you-buy…

46

but by the time I try, all the buys are sold out and I have to pay more! gah.

47

I couldn’t disagree more. Unless it is a disaster vintage with some serious flaw, chances are my favorite producers are going to make great wine in any given vintage.

Im more apt to want to try before by the “vintage of the century” wines because they might be too ripe for my tastes.

48

Sounds like they’ve picked up some Bordeaux tricks.

49

Andrew, Your rhetoric sounds eerily similar to the what was coming from the Bordelais a few years ago. From long established customers this isn’t really very reassuring. I hope your new customers will be loyal to Burgundy. especially ones not labeled DRC, Rousseau or Roumier.

50

How reliable is the 15-day forecast?

Best of luck.

51

We will disagree on 2009 but surely on 2005 and 2010 nobody disagrees and if you didn’t buy pre-arrival you didn’t buy period, for many producers.

I will likely buy Maison Ilan 2012 pre-arrival, but little else unless it does turn out to be another 2010…

52

Egads! Don’t tar me with the Bordeaux brush. You know what us Burgundians think of the Bordel(ais). [tease.gif]

For négociant-vinificateurs, like myself and Ray, our fruit costs are determined largely by negotiations between the big growers, négociant houses and courtiers run by the BIVB and the prices have been rising for years. There is no “gouging” going on my side or by any other micro-négoce I know of. If my fruit costs go down I am going to pass that on to my clients.

I only wanted to inject some honesty into the discussion as to whether 2012 prices would be below 2010.

53

This time of year? You can’t put stock into the 12 hour. Weather is liable to do a number of things. Blue skies now, but it can all change before you know it. Winds, wetness, and ripeness are the main subjects this week

54

Thanks for the response Charlie. Not sure where I said 2011 is going to be as good as 2010. Could you help me out with pointing it out for me in the above personal email that Scott shared? [popcorn.gif]
I had sent this personal email to Scott in response to him asking about the weather at the moment and if there were concerns on my end at the moment. It wasn’t a bulk email or anything used to sell wines. I’ve mentioned before, my 2011s are and have been sold out. I still have people email me and ask me questions to which I’m always more than happy to shoot a response.

I should mention that I am quite pleased with the 2010s and 2011s, in spite of the general worry that was present on the forums during the growing season of both. You can read my thoughts on both vintages quite early on, I of course stand by what I’ve mentioned at each turn of the weather.

Of note, we had horrible hail in Morey 1er Cru Chaffots in 2009…interesting when it is lauded as a "perfect growing season but it was the worst for this plot. It was the worst I’ve seen the vineyard. They waited a bit to see a larger scope of the damage, dropped fruit and the remaining fruit looked beautiful. Same thing for Monts Luisants in 2010, Volnay in 2011 and both Volnays this season. Of course I don’t prefer hail or other vineyard issues, but these are things which don’t exclude the possibility for having a sound and site-specific wine at the end of the day.

I don’t quite view vintages in the sense of “as good” or “better”, etc. To be direct, I’ve had disappointing wines in heralded vintages and quite a few stunning wines in vintages that have been overlooked to generalize.

Here’s what I know to be true. If there are healthy grapes on the vines there is hope that something interesting can come of it. We may have to overpay for what we actually use if looking at it in this manner. The situation of us taking a lot more grapes than what we use is a real one, but the resulting wines would be the result of only healthy and sorted grapes. This gives me quite a bit of confidence as my approach isn’t to take something and mold it. If I have healthy grapes, that is all that I need, I can’t ask for more. There are many other variables which will contribute or dictate the nuances or overall impression of the wine, but health is first, type of expression is secondary. I feel that by sorting I have much more of an interest and role in the first than the second. Will the wine be the best, better, worse or otherwise in some consumer’s eyes? Sure, but I’m perfectly happy with that. And while I will buy grapes every year from my growers, this does not guarantee a resulting Maison Ilan wine will be offered in the market. I’m not above tossing out or bulking out wine for the greater good.

Prices for fruit: yup, they have been on the rise, especially at the classification levels we work in. Our prices aren’t glued to how things fluctuate in the grape market but I do pay attention.

55

Yea - excellent point : Charlies [cheers.gif] .

The window of availabity ( = to buy ) during release time is very narrow here in Quebec, Canada. Worse…it is practicaly no secondary market here.

So I just buy blindly year in and year out ( = without tasting first ) of my fav wines from my fav producers.

56

Peter, Im in the same position here in BC. Usually buying blind and if I dont end up liking the wine it’s very difficult to sell because there is no secondary market here as it’s techincally illegal for individuals to sell wine.

57

Thanks, I was sort of kidding. Good luck with the next 15 days, in any event.

58

The weather is changing so it must be time to start picking, after a wretched start to the season, a proper August and a beautiful, hot, first ten days of September, the weather has turned notably autumnal starting with yet another storm over Santenay and Puligny on Tuesday night. The forecast is ok for the next week or so, with quite a lot of cloud and maybe some drizzle but nothing ugly. It could get worse from the 22nd onwards though.

Arnaud Ente and Dominique Lafon are starting tomorrow, Friday, their samples showing ripe grapes rather than in response to less favourable weather further ahead. Others will follow shortly and there’s no reason why the crop should not be of very decent quality. The problem is that there will be hardly any of it after the dreadful start to the season.

The exceptional cold blast in February which froze pipes in many a house appeared to have killed off some vines in the Beaujolais. A miserable June led to a poor and strung out flowering, with lots of aborted grapes (coulure) and undersized grapes (millerandage) reported. From April onwards, and especially during a thundery July, there were repeated hailstorms which affected almost all parts of the Cote de Beaune though rather less the Cote de Nuits. There was also great risk from odium and mildew – all in all a nightmare for the vignerons to manage but assuming you made the right calls, the impact was on volume not on potential quality.Grapes at Lafon

August was a proper summer month, notably better than on the north side of the English channel, and early September positively balmy. I haven’t spotted much rot in the vines – well to be truthful, I haven’t spotted many bunches of grapes. 2012 will be the fifth short crop in the last six for red Burgundy but no reason why it shouldn’t be good. Whites will be in short supply too, though the Maconnais and Chablis appear to be better off than the Cote D’Or.

Now it’s time to get my hands dirty as the pickers pile into the vines.
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59

Around 50,000 pickers have descended on Beaujolais for the harvest, with yields down to 2003 levels, although quality is expected to be high.

Inter Beaujolais issued a statement saying: “although the 2012 harvest is expected to be low, the berries have been small and concentrated so the grape quality should be high”.

As with most French regions this year, the weather has been inconsistent.

A cold January and February gave way to a warmer than normal March which prompted an early budbreak.

April saw a return to cold and rainy weather which delayed flowering until around 5 June.

Véraison took place a month later on 5 August and proceeded rapidly thanks to a return in the warm weather that swept through France throughout that month.

The warm weather persisted into early September and has kept the vines and crop in a good condition.

Beaujolais’ proximity to the Rhône, which is expecting a good year as well, has spared it the worst of the weather and disease which have struck its more northerly cousin Burgundy.

60

Thanks Leo