I would caution against extrapolating from the Mâconnais to the Côte d’Or and indeed Côte Chalonnaise, as it was both drier and hotter. As a vintage, 2015s in the Mâcon are more reminiscent of the 2011s produced there (obviously not 2011 Côte de Beaune whites)—though some producers did very well and I was positively surprised by the wines after hearing about the conditions in which they were harvested.
Haven’t tasted any. But I have tasted quite a few Cru Beaujolais at this point, and most of those are overripe for my tastes. Have also tasted quite a few 2015 N. Rhones, and while I found most of the reds to be quite good (in a warmer vintage way), many of the whites were quite ripe to overripe. It’s an extrapolation, for sure, but I’ve been able to correlate vintages between Rhone and Burgundy fairly well over the past decade, apart from local events like hail and frost. So for me, 2015 will be a taste before you buy Burgundy vintage - which admittedly means I’ll miss out on most of the early offers, but that’s OK, because most of the wines I chase have been priced out of reach for me.
Well what does 1966 (and 1978) mean? What specific characteristics?
(Keeping in mind that 2014 production was high while 2015 is hyped and low volumes …which may lead to wishful thinking?)
I tasted through a number of producers from Cote de Beaune and Cote de Nuits the first week of November (Bertheau, Barthod, Cheurlin/G Noellat, Mugneret-Gibourg, Roumier, F. Carillon amongst others)… and will return in February to visit those I did not have the time to visit this time.
I have not felt at all that the vintage is of the caliber of 99, 05 or 10.
While it’s not 09 either, it’s a lot closer to it than it would be to the vintages mentioned above. It has not much in common with '03 apart for those producers which have picked their grapes a bit late.
In fact, apart from Christophe Roumier who has an absolutely stunning range from bottom to top (Bonnes-Mares in particular is stellar) I would choose very carefully as the producers who have not picked the grapes early enough have a lack of acidity in the wines and a level of ripeness that is at the very limit of my liking. It has also caused the wines to be either overly tannic or slightly out of balance with relative “heat” on the finish… And while some were quite consistent (Mugneret-Gibourg, Barthod), some others had more difficulty with presenting a range of wines of the same caliber - taking in account the terroir of course (Bertheau, Cheurlin)… Besides, I found that the core structure of the wines is not anywhere like 2005. At all the producers I visited, the 2005 were more complete, structured, balanced and pleasurable at that same stage.
As for the whites… I yet have to find one wine that I liked. Roulot may become the exception, I will taste these later this winter.
The hype for the 2015s is relatively stunning and, to me, completely unjustified.
The hype is part of the business, and those buying in to it can’t stand to hear any different. What you say about freshness being a challenge is consistent with I’ve been hearing…if that’s important (which it is to me, not caring for '09 so much) look for the cooler microclimates and the producers who were ready to pounce early. Sylvain Pataile in Marsannay comes to mind. Anyhow, thanks for the report. Seems you wanted to like the wines and/or expected to, but found something different.
It is true that the weather conditions in 2015 have been particularly favourable and that at harvest time, the grapes were in perfect condition. So one would have expected to find wines of a very high quality. But while they were relatively good, they were not as great as the '05s or '10s at the same stage, imho.
FWIW, JF Coche-Dury mentioned that '15 was, I quote: “average, at best”… Meaning “not great”.
Thanks for your input. I’ll look forward to other people’s detailed feedback when they’ve tasted a good number of wines. This definitely seems like a ripe, warm-weather vintage in most of the rest of France, at least from what I’ve seen so far.
Barthod produced very good wines and the terroirs, I thought, were very clear in all of them. Because it is a relatively “ripe” vintage, I much preferred the “colder”, more mineral wines that are Fuées, Véroilles and Cras. Now, I like these 1er Crus in particular year in year out, but this time even more particularly so.
Mugneret-Gibourg had relatively powerful wines with still, if quite refined, a lot of tannins… which is also very unusual. Still, the wines are fragrant, well crafted and the Clos Vougeot was simply superb. Please take “powerful” with a grain of salt. They are “powerful” in context of Mugneret-Gibourg. Also, fwiw, I thought the NSG 1er Cru Chaignots was amazing. A wine I always like but this time, I really loved it at this early stage.
Michael,
Great! and Thanks as these are two of my favorite producers so I get some allocation. Indeed, the colder climates perform better in warmer years and vice versa.
This may be a misleading extrapolation in 2015, as Beaujolais experienced drought conditions whereas the Côte d’Or and Côte Chalonnaise did not. It might be worth looking at the weather data, with special reference to the weather at the time of harvest.
Michael, I did not taste at as many wineries as you did, but really did love the 2015s at Mugneret-Gibourg. You mention that you found them consistent, but don’t say how much you liked them. Thoughts?
I also very much liked the 2015s I tasted at Hudelot-Noellat and Dublere, but did not taste at enough wineries where I feel I can make an overall conclusion on the vintage. My sense is that the 2015s I had are not as good as the 2010s I tasted at the same stage (the summer we met in Alsace), but I did like them better than the 2012s I had the last time I was in Burgundy. I am nervous about comparisons to 2005 until I actually start finding 2005s to become more drinkable.
While I´m not a long time “resident” of Burgundy, I´m visiting there since 1988 …
sure I haven´t tasted the 1966 (nor 1978) in their youth, but have had enough later: I don´t find much similarity of 2014 to these vintages … the tannins are usually much sweeter, the fruit is less astringent (hardly at all) and many wines had a lot of charm from cask and early bottlings …
I would maybe say (talking about the fine efforts): a mix between 2000 and 2002, with more intensity than 2000, and more charm than 2002 … also with a bit of the liveliness of 2001, but less pronounced acidity …
2014 is a vintage that will provide a lot of pleasure - without having to wait 1.5 to 2 decades - but with only the very best wines offering highest excitement …
Overall I prefer 2014 to 2013 (and sure to 2011), but like the 2012s more …
Thank you for the report, Michael! For reasons explained in another thread on Burgundy 2015, I could also find the hype on 2015 difficult to understand. I have tasted too little to have an overall opinion myself, but from what I tasted I find it hard to believe that this is a great vintage.