1990 Bouchard Père & Fils Echézeaux Grand Cru

There has been a total reversal of the winemaking philosophy at Bouchard Pere et Fils. This is one of the wealthiest firms in France, as well as the largest landowner of premier and grand crus in Burgundy. For years their wines, while commercially acceptable, were uninspiring. Yields were not limited, excessive amounts of SO2 were employed, the wines were processed and racked excessively, and, most damaging, they were aggressively filtered, often with sterile micropore filters. Inspired by the exceptional success enjoyed by such negociant firms as Faiveley and Louis Jadot (they had stopped filtering all of their premier and grand crus by 1988, opting for a minimal interventionist process in their winemaking), Paul Bouchard and his son Jean-Francois have begun to turn out their finest wines since the forties and fifties. The wines are deeper-colored and noticeably more concentrated. All the premier crus and grand crus are bottled with minimal additions of SO2, and are not filtered. Consequently, as the notes and scores reveal, there has been a significant leap in quality. The deep, richly colored 1990 Echezeaux is full-bodied, with a masculine personality, and gobs of tannin and depth in the long, formidable finish. This backward, unevolved wine needs at least 5-6 years of cellaring; it should keep for 12-15 years. Kudos to Bouchard Pere et Fils for recognizing that improvements had to be made, and for having the courage to implement them. Various importers.