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Burgundy Insights from the Winehog

Vintage Report – Burgundy 2013 vintage – update March 2015

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During my March tip to Burgundy including the Trilogie en Côte de Nuits tasting at Chateau Clos de Vouget I had the opportunity to taste a large selection of 2013s – both reds and whites. And based on this I have revised my view on the 2013 vintage somewhat.

The quality of the reds show larger variation than I initially expected from the tastings in March and November 2014, and while the wines from the top producers in genereal are fine, there are some rather problematic efforts if one move on to some of the “lesser” producers.

On the positive note … the 2013 whites seem to show even better that initially expected, with a even more refined aromatic profile – at least from some producers.

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Impressions – Red Burgundy 2013 – (Cote de Nuits)

The Trilogie en Côte de Nuits include many of the top producers and quite a selection of “lesser” producers, and this allowed me to taste a much wider range of producers than the selected few I have time to visit over the year.

Firstly this was a vintage made under difficult conditions .. so don’t expect miracles .. but fear not! .. there are however fine wines made by the usual trusted suspects and those who made strict selection of the grapes.

The top end producers
The best red 2013s are very contrastful wines with quite high phenolic ripeness and a very crisp and vibrant acidity.

The acidity is perhaps a tad more refined and civilized than the 2008s but share some of the vibrant energy of this vintage. The fruit is juicy and transparent, but can be on the darker side especially if the extraction is a bit high.

I really love the tension between the juicy fruit on one sideand the energetic and vibrant acidity on the other side. The expression of terroir is very fine in most wines, as the transparency is excellent if the extraction have been kept on a reasonable level.

The vintage does however have a somewhat rustic component with it’s tannins, and is in that sense comparable with vintages like 1993, 1995 and perhaps 2001… and one could fear that the most tannic wines will take very long time to unfold … and some wines with unripe tannins will most likely never soften.

The top end producers have via strict selection managed to keep this rustic tendency at a reasonable level.

A word of warning – be careful with wines from producers that employ high extraction. I would argue this in most vintages but the point is even more important in a vintage like the 2013s – as extracted wines could turn out to be very austere.

The best wines – from the top terroirs – are very interesting and could well develop into some magnificently nervy and vibrant wines.

The “lesser” producers
The conditions in 2013 were very difficult, and especially the long and irregular flowering seem to have caused problems, as there seem to have been serious issues with uneven ripeness of the grapes. This really calls for a very strict selection of the grapes to eliminate unripe and underripe grapes.

Producers who missed out on the selection process have in some case made some very vegetal and tannic wines, with a rather unpleasant bitterness from the unripe grapes. 

Most of the wines are not bottled yet, and it’s therefore too early to say how big and serious this problem is, but I fear that some wines will be seriously unpleasant.

Summing up the reds
The 2013 vintage is all about tasting and selecting. The top producers have in most cases made lovely wines – and are also in this vintage a relatively sure bet. 

The quality of the lesser producers is at this point showing great variation, and while many of them have made good wines .. there are sadly also some that should be avoided. So I recommend careful selection of the 2013s .. taste before you buy, buy the producers you trust, and avoid producers with a dark extracted style.

Impressions – White Burgundy 2013

The overall impressions of the 2013s whites are very positive. The whites are blessed with a energetic and powerful acidity. The aromatic profile is more focused than the 2012s and a tad more energetic and powerful than the 2011s ..

All the whites I tasted were beautifully balanced with a fine nervy acidity – the acidity level is fine and the acidity has a gorgeous energy – with a little of the crunchy and vibrant quality of the 2008 whites.

The variation in style somehow seems larger than in the previous vintages … some have made some very refined 2013s while others have a slightly more rustic aromatic profile. 

In general I do however feel that the quality level is oustanding at the top end producers, and that the best wines can match and sometimes even surpass the wines produced in previous vintages including 2011 and sometimes even 2010.

Please note the conditions were very difficult, and there is a risk for large variation in quality among the lesser producers … so be careful when you pick the 2013s.

Tasting notes from my Burgundy trips will be published over the next weeks – and will appear below when they become available.

Tasting notes – Red Burgundy 2013 – tasted from bottle

Tasting notes – Red Burgundy 2013 – tasted from cask

Tasting notes – White Burgundy 2013 – tasted from bottle

Tasting notes – White Burgundy 2013 – tasted from cask

Vins d’émotion

Vin d'émotion - A true vin d’émotion – a Burgundy of passion

Hedonistic - A truly hedonistic wine – lively and enjoyable

A truly enjoyable wine - A vivacious wine for pure indulgance

Emotional potential - A Vin Vif - fresh, energetic and with a light appearance

Tedious

Annoying

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