Arlaud Morey St Denis Ruchots 1er

Note: from 40+ year old vines

Producer note: Cyprien Arlaud, who directs this domaine which owns 15 ha and farms a total of 18 ha, described 2016 as a vintage where “we had both good and bad luck as the frost largely spared us in Morey and much of Gevrey yet hit us hard in Chambolle. We tried to buy the smudge pots for 15 days before the frost hit but with no luck. While the losses were less we were also seriously concerned about the vicious attack of mildew and it took a great deal of effort to successfully fight it off. We picked from the 24th of September to the 7th of October and thankfully the fruit was essentially spotless so not much sorting was necessary. Yields were highly disparate from one parcel to another but on average we were off 50% and even within this figure there were differences as the old vines suffered much more than the younger vines. I did a relatively soft vinification and used roughly 20% of whole clusters rather than my usual 30%. As to the wines, I very much like them as they’re fresh, aromatic and impressively transparent as each terroir speaks clearly. I think people are going to really like the 2016s once they have a chance to try them.” As the scores and commentaries suggest, despite the widespread reduction present, I found the Arlaud 2016s to generally perform in-line with the typical quality of what I found in Morey. Chambolle and Gevrey. (Skurnik Wines, www.skurnik.com, NY, North Berkeley Imports, www.northberkeleyimports.com, CA, both USA; O.W. Loeb, www.owloeb.com and Flint Wines, www.flintwines.com, both UK).

Tasting note: Reduction. There is a delectable richness to the velvety and sappy middle weight flavors that possess a caressing, round and generous mouthfeel that continues onto the sappy, lingering and beautifully balanced finish. This should both drink well young but age well too. Good stuff.