Burgundy 2010 En Primeur - Armit

2010 Chablis Vintage Report
The Growing Season
2010 followed a cold, long winter, and
spring took a while to get going. The
beginning of April was warm and dry
and bud burst got off to a good start,
however there were some frosts and the
end of the month saw cooler unsettled
weather set in. Alternating cool and
warm periods through May and June
meant flowering was disturbed and at
Domaine Droin it took place in relatively
cold, damp conditions. Millerandage was
widespread reducing yields by up to 40%
in some areas. At Droin yields were down
by nearly 20% and the 1ers Crus were
particularly struck. Hot weather returned
at the end of June and continued through
July. Chablis escaped the thunderstorms
seen elsewhere in Burgundy until mid-
August, when the rain that did arrive was
mostly welcomed.
September improved and a good amount
of sunshine in the middle of the month
allowed good maturity to be achieved,
without an excess of rot to contend with.
The Harvest
September 20th saw the start of the
majority of harvesting, and the weather
was clear until the night of the 23rd,
when a lot of rain fell. The ensuing days
were showery and cool rather than very
wet. Overall a relatively healthy crop was
brought in, although a few producers did
have problems with late rot. The grapes
were small with a high ratio of skin to
juice and concentrations were good
where the harvest was completed before
the rains fell.
The Wines
After the lush ripeness of the 2009,
2010 is a return to a more mineral,
classic style. With the different
characteristics of each vineyard very
clearly defined, the wines are the
perfect expression of their terroirs.
Benoit Droin prefers the cleaner, fresher
style this year. There is a richness and
concentration which is attributable to
the skin: flesh ratio, but the wines also
display a fantastic purity of fruit and a
serious mineral structure and power,
although without the leanness of the
2007s. Acidity is actually comparable
to the 2008s, but this is not apparent
as the extra weight of fruit renders the
wines more round and enticing at this
stage, but the freshness and minerality
provide an elegance and balance which
is extremely appealing . Altogether a
wonderful vintage here. The top wines
will undoubtedly age for 10 years or so,
and there is much enjoyment to be had at
village level within the next 2-3 years and
the 1ers Crus will fill the gap in between
nicely if you can wait that long! Classic
Chablis lovers will prefer this vintage
to the 2009, but there is undoubtedly
something for everyone in 2010 as the
vineyards provide clear variations of style,
and certainly at Domaine Droin there
is the opportunity to drink magnificent
Chablis at extremely affordable prices.
2010 Vintage Report
Chablis
The Market
Demand for Chablis remains stable.
The lower end of the market continues
to battle with mass produced wine from
around the globe, and a lot of mediocre
wines compete in this arena. At the top
end however, the producers with their eye
on quality deservedly continue to succeed.
From the consumer’s point of view true
bargains can be found in Chablis as,
in the main, these top producers have
not followed some of the other wine
making regions and increased their
pricing to stratospheric levels, despite the
undoubted quality to be found. We always
focus on the producers who we believe
create delicious wines whatever the
vintage conditions, who have an integrity
and pride in their work which shines
through. This offering from Droin is highly
recommended and will provide great
pleasure for many years to come.
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