2011 Meursault

Spice, pear and white floral notes meld together in Drouhin's 2011 Meursault. This is an especially soft, caressing wine for the year. Hints of lemon, butter and pastry add layers of complexity on the finish. There is plenty of balance and harmony here, but readers need to enjoy the 2011 sooner rather than later.

Moving on to the 2011 vintage, the 2011 Meursault Village is a blend of fruit sourced from about eight contracted growers. It is rather closed on the nose with light, slightly resinous scents. The palate is nicely balanced and, though soft in texture, it offers good weight. It needs to dial up the attack and tension on the finish. Drink now-2016. It is always a pleasure to meet Veronique Drouhin, although this was actually the first time that I had visited their winery on the southern fringe of Beaune. “All the estate has been under biodynamic practices since the mid-1990s (including Chablis) and organic since 1988,” she said to me as we commenced the tasting. “We have been ECOCERT certified since 2009.” I asked her what tangible difference biodynamics have made. “The estate wines have a lot of depth and energy but what is really better is the pH,” she said. She also cited the arrival of head winemaker Jerome Faure-Brac in 2005 as another reason for the improvement in quality. Now their approach is for no compromise on the fruit and to exact precise viticulture for each vineyard. Veronique told me that their entry level Laforet aims to encapsulate the whole picture of Bourgogne. “We know the wine is consumed young so it is not heavily extracted,” she told me. “We look for a lovely fruity, round, elegant Bourgogne. You know, it is easier to make an Amoureuses than a Burgundy Rouge because of the quantity. It is aged in older barrels and it is bottled sooner than in the past.” Importer: Dreyfus Ashby & Co., New York, NY; tel. (212) 818-0770