Worried with 2020 red wines of Bourgogne

[Nicklasss]

Last night, had diner with friends, and we opened 2 young red Bourgogne...

The 2020 Chevalier Ladoix 1er Cru Corvée was very concentrated and ripe, kind of heavy for pinot noir. Black berries, concentrated oak, density of fruit, remind me more a 15 % alcohol Bordeaux than Bourgogne. Tiring to drink.

We also opened a 2019 Antonin Guyin Corton Bressandes, that was also a beast, but more drinkable than the 2020. Meat, darkberries, soil, blackcherries, big pinot!

I really have question mark vs 2020 and red Bourgogne, as a few month ago, a Volnay from Glantenay was also barely drinkable. This Ladoix was also very far from my conception of Bourgogne... sad.

[JoelD]

I really have question mark vs 2020 and red Bourgogne, as a few month ago, a Volnay from Glantenay was also barely drinkable. This Ladoix was also very far from my conception of Bourgogne... sad.

2020 red burgs are a total shit show. There are certainly some good ones out there but it's a minefield. I've had many people agree on this that have been out to visit Burgundy recently.

2019 is where it's at IMO. However the 2020 whites are quite good.

[RPCV]

I have tried several whites and found them to be excellent. No reds yet but, as always with Burgundy, it's all about the producer....at least for me. It was a very early harvest, if I recall correctly but the whites I have tried didn't reflect heat or drought as the acids and fruit were balanced. I do agree with Joel on the 2019 reds....very good plus. Prices have gotten so silly that I am out of the Grand Cru game and am focusing on Beaune. That said, I have a few that are at peak so I'll bring a 1999 Clos des Lambrays to the BWE convention in December.

[JimS]

Tend to agree with this - I am reserving judgment just to see how they progress in 5-10 years, but out of my somewhat limited sample size, I also had the exact same impression. Reds are just an insane amount of power right now - whites? might be one of the top vintages I have had in a while.....across the board, I have been a huge fan of how these wines are coming off right now and what the future likely holds for them.

[Antoine]

Worried for 2020 and 2018...

[marcs]

I have a case of 2018 Faiveley Latricieres Chambertin on the basis of it being a cool vineyard spot and the claimed 13.5% alcohol…have my fingers crossed. Also some of the 18 boillot Moucheres

[Claudius2]

I have a case of 2018 Faiveley Latricieres Chambertin on the basis of it being a cool vineyard spot and the claimed 13.5% alcohol…have my fingers crossed. Also some of the 18 boillot Moucheres

I bought very little of 2018 as it was the hottest vintage since 2003, and I never liked that vintage anywhere (even in Australia).
The only wines I bought were a few reds from Chambolle that are relatively highly located. Hopefully they will not be heavy, over-ripe styles. I largely avoided 2018 whites - I have a few bits and pieces in mixed cases.

One point about 2020.
I went to a big Burgundy tasting (50 wines) earlier this year, incl many 2020s.
I never wrote up notes as it as simply too hard in the tasting room with nowhere to sit or write.
I think they do that so people are quicker. Oh well.

The whites were pretty good though I got the impression that the lesser wines were not very consistent.
I mean some were actually very typical with good minerality and acidify and a few others were really bland. To be expected.
At the higher level, I was surprised that the styles varied more than I expected.

I do not think they rival 2014 or 2017 for my palate - the 2014s are now great to drink - had one (Chassagne M. 1er Morgeot) on the weekend - and they have developed an array of flavours without heaviness, and the minerality is delightful. Classic style.

So I noted significant variations based on the winemaker - to be expected, but two wines from the same vineyard showed the winemaker more than the site. So my point is to buy only those from the makers you understand and prefer.

As for the reds, sorry I was quite disappointed, and the 2019s overall were more the style I prefer. Some were seriously lacking in any Bourgogne style. Sometimes that is okay but not for a GC Burgundy. I found Corton to be very good however - not something I often say. The style seemed to be more classical. A few Cotes de Nuits reds, even with high price tags attached, were very disappointing and occasionally I felt quite dumbfounded.

i think avoid 2020 reds unless you try them or are convinced that the producer has come up with a style you prefer. I prefer 2019 reds though the hype of that vintage (for reds) sems a little over-done.

cheers
Mark

[marcs]

Saw some interesting data on this from Burgundy Report (https://www.burgundy-report.com/discove ... otandcold/).

Measured by average daytime temperature 2018 was the second hottest Burgundy vintage since the 70s, three-tenths of a degree C behind 2020 but only one-tenth of a C ahead of 2019. 2018-19-20 were the three hottest and very close. Seemingly stylistically "cool" recent vintages like 2011-2014-2017 were all way warmer than historical norms -- in fact all three were warmer than 2009. 2017 even had a warmer summer than 2009.

However it's striking to me how the pattern of heat differs between vintages. E.g. 2018 is "hotter" than 2003 based on overall average daytime temperature, but ten of the thirty hottest daytime temperatures ever measured (since the 70s) in Burgundy occurred during 2003, while not a single one occurred during 2018. So that is a very different pattern in terms of extremes of heat. By that metric 2019 and 2020 were also "hotter" in the extreme than 2018, as five of the hottest days measured occurred during 2019 and four during 2020. When you do it by hottest summers 2018-2019-2020 all seem fairly similar and unusually warm. But they are still significantly cooler than 2003, as 2003 had the hottest June-July-August on record by far.

2010 is overall the coolest vintage in something like 25 years (since 1996), but also one of the best. Next coolest over that period would be 2013 and it's a terrible vintage. Go figure.

Of course rainfall data is missing in all that.

[DavidG]

Very interesting. I wonder what impacts the end result more, average temp, number of spikes, magnitude of spikes? Or if each has their own different effect. Or how the vignerons respond.

[Antoine]

2013 not a terrible vintage in Burgundy. Variable with some excellent wines... not 2010 though...

[Comte Flaneur]

Yes agree with Antoine - 2013 wasn’t great in burgundy but it certainly was not terrible. It is all too easy to read across from Bordeaux. But interesting stats Marcus.