Yet the nearest and most similar vineyards, in Chablis and the Cote de Beaune, are making really good wines in 2020, right?
Weird stuff.
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I think I’ve read somewhere on the board that there may be a problem with 2020 Chablis. ?
Brad Baker and Donald Pennet both commented on this when David Bueker shared it in last month. I think some mention of it up thread caused him to share it.
Yeah, I picked up on it from Terry, and dumped it in another thread. It was suggested that I start another, but I never got around to it.
Terry doesn’t think it’s limited to Moussé.
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That’s what I’m concerned about.
Sounds darned similar to the grassy notes that Terry Theise has referred to in Champagne.
Some pick up a green, grassy, herbal type note in some 2020s. It is not the under ripe pyrazine note that you can find in some 2011s. It is not exactly the same as the savory, herbal note that you find in 2015, but somewhat similar in its grassy, green, but not really under ripe character. Like 2015, in 2020, this wasn’t something that you could taste in the vins clairs. It came after blending and the second fermentation. There are numerous theories as to where this may have come from - lack of proper nutrition in the grapes due to heat stress and the shorter growing season, lack of nitrogen in the soil, grapes that appear to have ripe phenolics, but still have something unripe in the seeds, something strange growing on the grape skins, etc… It isn’t in all the wines and it is a characteristic that bothers some, some find indifferent or interesting, or some do not detect at all.
Even more disappointing to many in Champagne was that the yield was reduced in 2020 to a level much lower than what it should have been due to COVID business concerns. This led many folks to be a bit choosier on what they selected, but it still didn’t necessarily stop some wines from displaying this characteristic.
As to the origin, I lean towards lack of proper nutrition in the grapes due to heat stress and the shorter growing season with a lack of nitrogen in the soil also being a possible contributing factor. As with 2015, not all 2020s have this characteristic and the wines are still young. We also don’t know if this characteristic will stay in the wines that show it and how it may evolve over time.
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Thanks for the extensive explanation Brad. I am not entirely averse to the 2015 grassy note, so will likely dip my toes into 2020 to see what’s up.
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Will be interesting to see if this can be found in the big names too.
Louis Michel didn’t seem affected. I tried the village and Séchets. I’ll keep my tastebuds on alert for the next ones.
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I’ve had the unpleasant green asparagus-esque note in a number of 2020 Chablis from various producers and am actively avoiding the vintage. It was been especially obvious when comparing with a 2019 or 2021 from same producer.
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Are people finding this in other white Burgundy from 2020, or just Chablis?
Pretty sure that Jim Cowan has noted some weird things in a couple of bottles of 2020 Michel.
Now you’re freaking me out. @Jim_Cowan, any recollection of this and if so, any particular climate from Louis Michel?
Edit
Those were the only 2020 reviews from Jim I could find:
Looks like Houston can take this Domaine off their radar.
Given the predominance of machine harvesting and the aspiration to produce generous yields, if any white Burgundy sub-region is going to be herbaceous, it’s going to be Chablis.
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I had difficulty with the 2020 Michel, Butteaux (not VV) and it was consistent over a case. The village wine was as described in the noted quote - whether it still is or not I don’t know.
But suffice to say, I’m not buying anymore 2020 from Louis Michel.
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We bought a mixed case - MdT, Montmains and Butteaux VV - but haven’t opened any. I hope we don’t have the same experience.
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The village was fine when I had it (end of March, end of April). The Séchets was also fine in end of April. I’ve got some Forêts, Montée de Tonnerre and Les Clos. I’ll check in on all 3 as soon as we’re back home in late May / early June.
I think that with the idea that we need to “check” three year old wines, we are getting a touch carried away… Age them for as long as you usually would, then see what you think. The wines showed well just after bottling, the vintage conditions were good, the fruit looked and tasted good… have a bit of faith. I would be more concerned about the natural cork closures, personally.
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