First taste through the 2008s
Yesterday Kelley Fox and I tasted through all of our 2008s in the cellar - our first check-in on the wines after crush. The wines have only been in barrel for 4-5 weeks, but it’s interesting to see where the wines are now, and then to follow them through to their conclusion in the years to come.
Like all of our neighbors, we were thrilled with the quality of the fruit during harvest and fermentation. We remain thrilled after this first taste-through. Great levels of acidity, nicely buttressed by rich fruit flavors, and superb concentration and length all around - it will indeed be an excellent year. The levels of malic acid were on the high side this year, so after malolactic fermentation the wines will change pretty dramatically. That said, it’s pretty easy to see where these wines are going, and it’s all good. Here’s a quick rundown of the lots -
Maresh Block 10 - Bright red cherries, very persistent, very long, my favorite lot in the cellar today
Maresh Block 12 - Silky and long, tighter on the back-end now, tannins more pronounced than in Block 10
Ribbon Ridge - Absolutely gorgeous fruit, rich and pretty, mouthfilling and long
Momtazi B - Rich black fruits and white pepper, very distinct flavors, very rich and concentrated
Momtazi J - Bright and fresh, less complex than the B
Momtazi A - Very similar to B but not as complex, less mid-palate concentration
Momtazi D - Dark, concentrated, long, and intense
In all, a really impressive group of wines which should play very well into our style of elegance and finesse. We will start to warm the cellar a bit over the holidays to get malo going slowly. We’ll keep you informed here on the progress, and our next round of tastings.
In the meantime - I owe you some podcasts! Between harvest and my November trip to Burgundy and Thanksgiving the time has flashed by, but I’ll be working on Part 2 of the Burgundy 101 podcast shortly, and hope to get that up over the holidays. I also have tastings/interviews with Romain Taupenot and Thiébault Huber to edit - those will probably end up together in one show early in the new year.
We are also now equipped to do video podcasts - I have some ideas for a couple of short pieces that I’ll try to get together over the holiday break. In the meantime, here’s a shot of Vosne-Romanée in the snow - l’hiver est arivée en Bourgogne!
Looking down on the village of Vosne-Romanée