The 2013 Burgundy vintage

[MChang]

Ready isn’t really a useful term. Are 13s enjoyable to drink now? Imo yes, in a primary hedonistic way.

[A_Gillette]

‘13 Rousseau clos de Beze was excellent in November. Short on the kaleidoscopic, swirling complexity that the great vintages have, but delicious, and it outclassed a bunch of very good wines on the table. ‘13 Bouley Clos des Chenes in December was in really good form. Typically not my favorite Bouley volnay but this one made me go out and buy more. Mugnier musigny ‘13 just arrived and is in the queue so I plan to give it a whirl soon and report. Can’t speak about the vintage more broadly unfortunately.
A

[JT_Ng]

From my experience, 2013 Gevreys are great. Above average everywhere else in the Cote de Nuits. Of course I am referring to the generally better growers.

[Peter_Chiu]

From my experience, 2013 Gevreys are great. Above average everywhere else in the Cote de Nuits. Of course I am referring to the generally better growers.

Same experience for me with Damoy’s Gevrey village : Clos Tamisot 2013.

[Peter_Chiu]

‘13 Rousseau clos de Beze was excellent in November. Short on the kaleidoscopic, swirling complexity that the great vintages have, but delicious, and it outclassed a bunch of very good wines on the table. ‘13 Bouley Clos des Chenes in December was in really good form. Typically not my favorite Bouley volnay but this one made me go out and buy more. Mugnier musigny ‘13 just arrived and is in the queue so I plan to give it a whirl soon and report. Can’t speak about the vintage more broadly unfortunately.
A

Alex…thanks for the above TNS for vintage 2013.

Any plan for a Clash of Titans pair-tasting event : 2013 Rousseau CdBze vs 2013 Mugnier Musigny ???

If you do, please post…

[A_Gillette]

‘13 Rousseau clos de Beze was excellent in November. Short on the kaleidoscopic, swirling complexity that the great vintages have, but delicious, and it outclassed a bunch of very good wines on the table. ‘13 Bouley Clos des Chenes in December was in really good form. Typically not my favorite Bouley volnay but this one made me go out and buy more. Mugnier musigny ‘13 just arrived and is in the queue so I plan to give it a whirl soon and report. Can’t speak about the vintage more broadly unfortunately.
A

Alex…thanks for the above TNS for vintage 2013.

Any plan for a Clash of Titans pair-tasting event : 2013 Rousseau CdBze vs 2013 Mugnier Musigny ???

If you do, please post…

I don’t own the '13 beze but if you do an want to open one I will happily bring the mugnier and we can try them side-by-side.

[Tony_C]

From my experience, 2013 Gevreys are great. Above average everywhere else in the Cote de Nuits. Of course I am referring to the generally better growers.

Same experience for me with Damoy’s Gevrey village : Clos Tamisot 2013.

Had the Faiveley Latricieres Chambertin last night. Still very tight but this was excellent.

[Peter_Chiu]

‘13 Rousseau clos de Beze was excellent in November. Short on the kaleidoscopic, swirling complexity that the great vintages have, but delicious, and it outclassed a bunch of very good wines on the table. ‘13 Bouley Clos des Chenes in December was in really good form. Typically not my favorite Bouley volnay but this one made me go out and buy more. Mugnier musigny ‘13 just arrived and is in the queue so I plan to give it a whirl soon and report. Can’t speak about the vintage more broadly unfortunately.
A

Alex…thanks for the above TNS for vintage 2013.

Any plan for a Clash of Titans pair-tasting event : 2013 Rousseau CdBze vs 2013 Mugnier Musigny ???

If you do, please post…

I don’t own the '13 beze but if you do an want to open one I will happily bring the mugnier and we can try them side-by-side.

I have no access for the 2 wines in Quebec Canada for a while now.

[Jozef.P]

Friends,

Just had 2 ECHEZEAUX 2013 yesterday and both were ready and utterly enjoyable. The Anne Gros (93p) was more profound than I expected it to be when I tasted it in barrel in 2015. Anne Gros’ wines always seem lighter at that stage then they eventually turn out to be. DELICIOUS it was. Slightly even more profound was the BOCQUENET version. (95p) Ultimate proof, if stilll needed, of the brilliance of this former winemaker whose last vintage was 2015. It made us decide to have a deeper tasting of 2013 ECHEZEAUX with apart from the 2 domaines mentioned before also MILLOT, LAMARCHE, ARNOUX-LACHAUX and Vicomte Liger-Belair. Peter CHIU, if you were in Belgium at the beginning of March then I would be honoured if you could join.

SINCERELY JOHAN

I sent you a personal message Johan.

[Gaudissabois_Johan]

Dear Joseph,

Where did you sent it too? Did not receive any message? You made me very curious.

SINCERELY JOHAN

[Howard_Cooper]

Ready isn’t really a useful term. Are 13s enjoyable to drink now? Imo yes, in a primary hedonistic way.

if the wine tastes good at 9 years old, why wouldn’t it age? (Michael, i know you are not one who said it would not). I cannot remember ever having a grand cru burgundy that tasted good at 9 years old that did not age.

[MChang]

Ready isn’t really a useful term. Are 13s enjoyable to drink now? Imo yes, in a primary hedonistic way.

if the wine tastes good at 9 years old, why wouldn’t it age? (Michael, i know you are not one who said it would not). I cannot remember ever having a grand cru burgundy that tasted good at 9 years old that did not age.

I think the thought is some people feel that wines are made more for early drinking now as opposed to built for the long term. I think they’ll age well too but perhaps a lack of a track record is what people’s issue with it is.

[Howard_Cooper]

Ready isn’t really a useful term. Are 13s enjoyable to drink now? Imo yes, in a primary hedonistic way.

if the wine tastes good at 9 years old, why wouldn’t it age? (Michael, i know you are not one who said it would not). I cannot remember ever having a grand cru burgundy that tasted good at 9 years old that did not age.

I think the thought is some people feel that wines are made more for early drinking now as opposed to built for the long term. I think they’ll age well too but perhaps a lack of a track record is what people’s issue with it is.

Michael, I read this all the time but can you come up with an example of a grand cru red Burg that tasted good at 9 but did not age. Maybe it has happened with some Parkerized burgs or wines from Accad in his heyday, but not to any wine i have tasted. can you come with examples?

[MChang]

if the wine tastes good at 9 years old, why wouldn’t it age? (Michael, i know you are not one who said it would not). I cannot remember ever having a grand cru burgundy that tasted good at 9 years old that did not age.

I think the thought is some people feel that wines are made more for early drinking now as opposed to built for the long term. I think they’ll age well too but perhaps a lack of a track record is what people’s issue with it is.

Michael, I read this all the time but can you come up with an example of a grand cru red Burg that tasted good at 9 but did not age. Maybe it has happened with some Parkerized burgs or wines from Accad in his heyday, but not to any wine i have tasted. can you come with examples?

The ones made to drink well at age 9 are mostly recent so there aren’t a lot of examples. IIRC 00-01 mostly started drinking well in the last couple years after being shut down for awhile; I don’t recall how they drank 10-12 years ago.

[Brady_Daniels]

Ready isn’t really a useful term. Are 13s enjoyable to drink now? Imo yes, in a primary hedonistic way.

if the wine tastes good at 9 years old, why wouldn’t it age? (Michael, i know you are not one who said it would not). I cannot remember ever having a grand cru burgundy that tasted good at 9 years old that did not age.

I understand that the original post was about a grand cru, and I understand that some people rate a vintage on its grand crus. But, I drink across the range, and need to make my drink/age decision accordingly.

I almost never open a grand cru at age nine, so my feedback is based more on regional and village wines. My experiences from 2019 through the first half of 2021 were quite mixed with 2013 red burgs, with fruit fading, losing body, and a few that smelled too much like old school burgundy, having an almost sewage-like character.

Since then I’ve had better luck, leaving me to wonder whether I just got unlucky or whether to attribute it to burgundy aging on a Sin-like curve, rather than the usual arc.

Still my early tertiary experience on lesser wines, combined with Johan’s “ready” experience on grand cru, makes me wonder if the wines are advancing quicker than any other recent vintage I’ve experienced. Or whether burgundy is just a bit funny, and I shouldn’t worry about it.

I have more 2011 than 2013, so that’s probably a more pressing concern.

[Matthew_King]

Ready isn’t really a useful term. Are 13s enjoyable to drink now? Imo yes, in a primary hedonistic way.

if the wine tastes good at 9 years old, why wouldn’t it age? (Michael, i know you are not one who said it would not). I cannot remember ever having a grand cru burgundy that tasted good at 9 years old that did not age.

I understand that the original post was about a grand cru, and I understand that some people rate a vintage on its grand crus. But, I drink across the range, and need to make my drink/age decision accordingly.

I almost never open a grand cru at age nine, so my feedback is based more on regional and village wines. My experiences from 2019 through the first half of 2021 were quite mixed with 2013 red burgs, with fruit fading, losing body, and a few that smelled too much like old school burgundy, having an almost sewage-like character.

Since then I’ve had better luck, leaving me to wonder whether I just got unlucky or whether to attribute it to burgundy aging on a Sin-like curve, rather than the usual arc.

Still my early tertiary experience on lesser wines, combined with Johan’s “ready” experience on grand cru, makes me wonder if the wines are advancing quicker than any other recent vintage I’ve experienced. Or whether burgundy is just a bit funny, and I shouldn’t worry about it.

I have more 2011 than 2013, so that’s probably a more pressing concern.

There’s only one way to find out, Brady. Start drinking!

[Brady_Daniels]

There’s only one way to find out, Brady. Start drinking!

Easier said than done. Most is on the other side of an ocean.

[Gaudissabois_Johan]

Friends,

I never said that the wines I was talking about could not age. But many wine journalists always give the impression that you should leave certainly Grand Crus to themselves for years and years. See the platform of drinkability that Alan Meadows offers. But like a friend of mine stated :“When it tastes good why not drink it now?” I only meant that it is certainly not a crime to drink even truly great wines on the younger side and that even at such an early stage they do taste GREAT.

SINCERELY JOHAN

[Peter_Chiu]

Friends,

I never said that the wines I was talking about could not age. But many wine journalists always give the impression that you should leave certainly Grand Crus to themselves for years and years. See the platform of drinkability that Alan Meadows offers. But like a friend of mine stated :“When it tastes good why not drink it now?” I only meant that it is certainly not a crime to drink even truly great wines on the younger side and that even at such an early stage they do taste GREAT.

SINCERELY JOHAN

Johan… I am will you here.

There is no crime to drink any wines on the younger side and forget about the replacement cost.

[Kent_Comley]

'13 Paul Pillot Chassagne looked really good last night. Good richness and nicely balanced.