Domaine Sylvain CATHIARD -- 2013s from Cask and Some 2012s from Bottle

Domaine Sylvain CATHIARD (Vosne-Romanée)

2013s  from Cask

Sébastien Cathiard said that he began harvesting on October 5. A big triage was necessary because heavy rain on September 28 led to a lot of rot, especially on the lower vineyards. About 20% of the crop was rejected either for rot or insufficient ripeness. Chaptalization varied between 0.7 and 1.4º. Grapes were stripped of the stems but not crushed. Maceration was a bit longer than in 2012 with a bit more pigeage (punching down). Sébastien said that the fermentations were finished by the end of June, which he called “rather classic,” that is, not out of the ordinary.

Sébastien has cut back the use of oak here from the amounts his father used, to the better, I think. No new oak on the Bourgogne; the village wines see 50-60% new oak; the Raignots 50%; the En Orveaux 2/3; the Thorey, Murgers, and Malconsorts 80%; and the Suchots and Romanée-Saint-Vivant 100%.

2013 Bourgogne  Pinot Noir

This is a pretty wine with red fruits and good acidity. It is raised in one year-old barrels. (84-87)

2013 Vosne-Romanée

The Vosne is from five different parcels, with an average vine age of about 50 years. The nose shows dark plum fruit and some spice. The dark plums continue in the mouth along with some blueberries and the wine shows excellent length and freshness. (89-92)

2013 Chambolle-Musigny  Clos de l’Orme

Eighty percent of the vines here are about 70 years old, the remainder are 22 years old. The nose is floral. In the mouth, the wine shows good freshness and structure, but the tannins are round. The fruit is dark and shows excellent concentration and complexity. (89-93)

2013 Nuits-Caint-Georges 1er Cru – Clos de Thorey

The vines here are 61 years old. The wine is has dark plum aromas and flavors with smooth tannins. Surprisingly, at the time I taste them, this wine is not as dense or as complex as the Clos de l’Orme and seems to be more a wine of finesse. (89-92)

2013 Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru – Aux Murgers

As usual, this wine shows itself of a class that is above the public’s overall knowledge of this vineyard. From vines that are about 70 years old. The nose and mouth are deep and intense. There is good structure here – this is a masculine wine from Côte de Vosne, and it has good length and freshness. (91-94)

2013 Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru – Aux Raignots

The vines here are 17 years old from a plot located just uphill from that of Grivot. The nose is floral. The mouth is light, nervy, and intense with red fruits, and the wine is almost lacy. (89-93)

2013 Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru – En Orveaux

The fruit here is dark, but the wine is light and airy, as is typical of En Orveaux. The fruit is also fresh and flowing. It is a very fine representation of the terroir. (89-93)

2013 Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru – Les Suchots

The nose has the earthy aromas typical of Suchots. The mouth shows good freshness to the red and dark fruit and it packs a fair amount of power into its medium/medium-plus weight body. (91-95)

2013 Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru – Aux Malconsorts

The nose here is spicy and dark, typical of Malconsorts. The mouth is spicy, dark, dense, powerful, and long. This is an excellent representation of Malconsorts. (92-95)

2013 Romanée-Saint-Vivant

The nose here is very perfumed, dark, smooth, and spicy, although surprisingly I find not quite the depth of the others, and the wine is also rather closed at the moment. It may well show still better from bottle. (92-96)

A Trio of 2012s  from Bottle

2012 Bourgogne  Pinot Noir

This wine is smooth, pure, and fresh, and doesn’t show the bony structure that so many 2012s have. It has excellent density to go with red (especially strawberry) fruit that has a slight gamy overtone. Very good clarity here. 89/A

2012 Vosne Romanée

The nose is earthy and spicy. In the mouth, the wine is medium/medium-light with earthy (positive) flavors and good length, but it seems to already be shutting down, which is the case with some other 2012s. As with the Bourgogne, the wine does not show the bony structure of many 2012s, though. There is attractive mouth-watering acidity here. 89+/A-

2012 Vosne-Romanée 1er – Aux Raignots

The texture here is smooth and there is more substance in the body than for the 2013 of this wine, as well as darker fruits and more power. There’s a fair amount of tannin, and like the village Vosne, this wine seems to be already shutting down. 91+/A-