Vintus

Vosne-Romanée "Les Petits Monts", Premier Cru

For viticultural purposes, the adjacent communes of Vosne-Romanée and Flagey-Echézeaux are considered to be one.  Taken separately, Vosne-Romanée covers 388 acres and Flagey-Echézeaux 177 acres, but all the village level and premier cru vineyards of the latter fall under the Vosne-Romanée and Vosne-Romanée Premier Cru appellations; only the grands crus of Flagey-Echézeaux bear the commune name.    The fourteen premier cru vineyards cover just over 141 acres: eleven of these are in Vosne, two are in Flagey, and one is split between the two, with total acreage of 113 and 28 acres, respectively, in each commune. Les Petits Monts is a small, 9 acre vineyard just up-slope from Richebourg. 

Mounir Saouma says about "Les Petits Monts" that it is not far from "Les Suchots", and on top of Richebourg, with a poor, dry soil.  It is in character the opposite of "Les Suchots", which is colored and tannic - it is a subtle and very fine wine, which shows little tannin, more floral notes and more of a St-Vivant character.

• 2007 Vintage

  As Mounir Saouma says, “2007 saw a fresh summer – when we say fresh summer, we mean well-balanced rain and sunny days.   There were cool but not cold days, days with some rain and sun, but not exaggerated either way.  And you see in the wines there is beautiful acidity, but not as much as 2008, and nice sweetness, but not as much as 2006.” 

   

  This character of mid-way but not extreme in many areas resulted in wines that took a long time to reveal their nature.  “The wines started fruity and the tannins were firm, and slowly we started seeing a kind of melding between sweetness and acidity after the malolactic a year later; we started seeing the real character of the wines after 14 months.  

   

  This development of the vintage is the reason that 2007 was the latest bottling Lucien Le Moine has ever done, and why they were the last producer in all of Burgundy to bottle.  Typically Lucien Le Moine starts bottling in January or February; in 2007 they started in February, but the majority of bottling took place from May to September.  Mounir aged all his 2007 wines on their lees, without sulfur, and never racked.   

   

  Mounir compares 2007 and 2006 a lot; they will both be vintages that are approachable and will last, and their technical numbers are similar, but they are physically and aromatically in completely different worlds.  “2006 is more about sweetness and for some people a heavier character; 2007 is more about freshness.  We will enjoy 2007, but it doesn’t take anything from the aging. 

   

  Some general commentaries on the Crus in 2007:  for people who love freshness and silkiness, with tannins that melt away, the Vosne-Romanées, Volnays, Chambolle-Musignys, and Morey-Saint-Denis show ethereal balance and almost transparent tannins.  For those that think 2007 is a light and easy year, the Gevrey-Chambertins, Nuits-Saint-Georges, Pommards and Cortons will show them depth and power.  

  • "The altitude shows here as well with very cool, pure and minerally red berry fruit aromas nuanced by subtle spice hints that are also reflected by the round yet detailed middle weight flavors that are carrying a certain underlying reserve on the textured, stony, mouth coating and tension-filled finish. A really lovely wine of understatement and style." 90-92 Points Burghound

  • "Good medium red. Candied cherry, raspberry and musky minerals on the nose, plus a whiff of leesy reduction and some vanillin oak. Suave on entry, then inexpressive in the middle palate, with new oak and sexy truffley perfume currently masking the wine’s fruit. Best today on the rather delicate aftertaste, which features fine-grained tannins." 89-92 Points International Wine Cellar