2009 Chevalier Montrachet

The 2009 Chevalier-Montrachet comes across as rather quiet and introspective. It possesses gorgeous inner perfume, layers of silky fruit and an expressive finish. This shows lovely balance if not quite the pedigree of the other grand crus here.

The 2009 Chevalier-Montrachet comes across as rather quiet and introspective. It possesses gorgeous inner perfume, layers of silky fruit and an expressive finish. This shows lovely balance if not quite the pedigree of the other grand crus here. Anticipated maturity: 2015+. Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey is one of Burgundy’s most exciting young producers. Colin-Morey works with six hectares of vineyards, three of which are estate owned, while the rest are sources of purchased fruit. According to Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey, the key to 2009 was picking early. The harvest started on the September 4. Colin-Morey did a long, slow press, with no batonnage once the wines were in barrel, all with the aim of preserving as much freshness as possible given the natural ripeness of the fruit. Roughly 80% of the wines were aged in 350-liter barrels, larger than the norm in Burgundy. Colin-Morey finished bottling the 2009s in April 2011. Colin-Morey told me he wasn’t enthused about the 2009s at first, but now thinks the wines have enough freshness to age well. A Daniel Johnnes Selection, imported by Michael Skurnik, Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300; also imported by Bertin Henri Selections, 10900 N.W. 21st Street, Unit 180, Doral, Florida 33172 tel: (305) 343-4054

High toned and magnificent but a bit fragile too. Much more substance than the Leflaive version! Open and languorous. Very embryonic and intellectual but not febrile in this case. Something to monitor. Impossible to pronounce at this stage. Wonderful undertow but for an absolute safe bet, go for the Bâtard. Made one 300-litre barrel. (JR)