Producer note: For readers who may not have heard, the uber-talented yet ever-modest Michel Niellon has passed away. He was one of the very first vignerons that I visited when I first went to Burgundy some 40+ years ago and he was always gracious and welcoming. He will be sorely missed, not only by his family but also by his legion of fans. He is succeeded by his daughter Françoise, son-in-law Michel Coutoux, as well as two grandchildren, both of whom have joined the domaine. With respect to the 2019 vintage, Coutoux commented that "it was yet another hot, dry and precocious growing season. Yields were all over the place as some were normal and some as low as 25 hl/ha due to the one-two punch of frost damage and a poor flowering. This is to say that most of the villages vineyards came in between 50 and 57 hl/ha, but one gave us 45 hl/ha and then several more were in the 25 hl/ha range. At least yields were above what we realized in 2016 but not that much more. We picked from the 7th of September and the fruit was clean with potential alcohols of 12.5 to 13.6% and good pHs. Regarding the wines, I was frankly surprised by their energy and freshness, as well as by the excellent terroir transparency. They should age well but they're so dense that they should also be reasonably accessible young." Fans of the domaine should be aware that the label has been redesigned as of the 2019 vintage and that the Bâtard will not reappear until 2023 or 2024. The vines in Chevalier will be progressively replaced as well over the next few years. Lastly, Coutoux noted that the 2019s were bottled in August 2020. (Treasury Château & Estates Wines, www.tweglobal.com, CA and Terlato Wines International, www.terlatowines.com, IL, both USA; O.W. Loeb, www.owloeb.com, Berry Brothers & Rudd, www.bbr.com and Robert Rolls & Co., www.robertrolls.com, all UK; Altaya Wines, www.altayawines.com, Hong Kong).
Tasting note: Here too the perfumed nose is markedly floral in character with additional notes of various white fleshed fruit and soft spice nuances. The delicious, intense and more vibrant and better detailed middle weight flavors possess better depth and persistence on the slightly drier finale. Lovely and a wine that should age well over the mid-term.
