J. Lassalle - Spécial Club 2014

2014

★★

Våren var varm och gav utrymme för riklig frukt. Som kontrast var juli extremt kall och regnig. En välkommen värmebölja i slutet av augusti skyndade på skörden i september. Slutresultatet är en ojämn årgång med stora regionala skillnader och en hel del urvattnade och gräsdoftande viner. Det blev dock en hel del fin Grand cru, såsom Gimonnet Spécial Club Cramant. 

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2014 by Curtis Joseph

★★★

• Harvest: September 8th
• Total Sales: 307,166,142 btl
• Yield: 11,553 kg/ha (11,000 kg/ha AC) 
• France: 162,253,234 btl
• Area under vine: 33,705 ha 
• Export: 144,912,908 btl
• Average potential alcohol: 10.0%
• Prix Constaté : €5.89/kg
• Average total acidity: 8.3 g/l
• Average gluconic acid: 0.11 g/l

Overview: An up-and-down year that ended well.

A warm, wet autumn and winter preceding the campaign – the second warmest in twenty years, with only seven days of hard frost throughout the winter. March and April were dry and very pleasant, and budbreak was early. Rain returned in May, and although June was dry, precipitation returned in July.

August continued rainy and cool, increasing the risk of rot and mildew in the vineyard. However, botrytis was not as prevalent as it might have been in 2014. Instead, the vines were troubled by sour rot caused by a combination of acetic acid bacteria and yeast that infect grapes damaged by drosophila flies. The sour rot affected Meunier most of all and Pinot Noir to a lesser extent. Chardonnay was mostly spared, as the problem most commonly afflicts thin-skinned varieties. It is chiefly because of this issue that the vintage ranks in the three-star category rather than four-star. Meunier was also most affected by downy mildew. Fortunately, September saw a return to warm, sunny, dry weather, allowing those who had skirted these dangers to make some very successful wines.

One delicious Blanc des Blancs is the vintage Brut Nature from Vauversin in Oger: “Produced from old vines at the foot of the hill in Oger fermented in cask, this shows a wonderful concentration of lemon and chalk aromas up front, and a silky, seamless texture on the palate. Very good length.” **** (Tasted 2019)

Even Meunier could succeed in the right hands. From my notes on Laherte Frères in Chavot (Coteaux Sud d’Epernay): “Les Vignes d’Autrefois is a 100% Meunier wine from old vines located at the base of the slope in Chavot and Mancy. The fruit is fermented in neutral casks, and the result has a lovely floral fruit on the attack and a silky texture that hides surprising depth on the finish.” **** (Tasted 2019)

One notable aspect of 2014 is that there were some interesting Coteaux produced throughout the region in 2014. A blanc from Robert Moncuit in Le Mesnil was classic, almost

Burgundian: “Lemons, cream and spice on the nose, with plenty of structure and an ample, round texture on the palate, this is 18 months in 300-litre casks, although the wood influence is very well integrated and melts into the lingering finish.” **** (Tasted 2016)

Tasted quite recently, the 2014 Coteaux Champenois La Côte aux Enfants from Bollinger was riveting: “Rich, vinous, eminently Burgundian, this opens with a deep cherry fruit character with hints of violets and freshly turned earth. On the palate, there is density and concentration and an elegant lightness and a lingering, limpid finish. Marvelous.” **** (Tasted 2019)

Overall, a very good vintage that misses being top rank because of pressure from disease. 2014 has produced a large number of vintage wines and some of lasting quality.