A Nebuchadnezzar of Clos Blanc! IN THE CELLAR On 4 April, the Domaine de la Vougeraie Six months’ ageing for the 2012 : bottled its first ever Nebuchadnezzar, The are hard at work with the estate’s most emblematic referring to the time between the alcoholic and Ladu DOMAINE lettre DE LA VOUGERAIE – the monopole Vougeot Premier Cru malolactic fermentations, is very good for the wines N°43. sPRING 2013 Clos Blanc de Vougeot. and helps stabilize their color. ♦ This exceptional bottle contains the For the first time, we have been trying out a new equivalent of 20 75cl bottles of this method called “clickage”, particularly for those THE SPIRIT OF the Domaine exceptional wine – some 15 liters (4 cuvées hit by hail in order to aerate them and dispel any hint of reduction. This involves pushing a little Dear Friends, gallons). air through the wines for a couple of minutes to ♦ Replanting evaporate the reduction aromas that mask the fruit. Winter is officially over, but an at the estate Everything is huge when it comes to this We still keep the lees because they nourish the wine early Easter with its traditional unusual container, starting with the weight and protect it against oxygen, which can be a real halo of cold has prolonged the of the bottle, which weighs a staggering threat and turn the wine to vinegar. season. shivers, Now that the winter and the cold weather are – in 10.2 kilos (22.5 pounds) empty and an ♦ in need of sun but with no ♦ Aggein the 2011s comes theory! – behind us, it’s time for the second phase shortage of energy. We hope impressive 25.4 kilos (56 pounds) when Why does hail cause reduction? of fermentation. The malolactic fermentations, or the changing moon will bring to a close: filled. The bottle was hand-blown, and was Reduction, H2S or rotten egg is not a very pleasant “malo”, is just starting to begin for the whites. In smell for a wine. Even if it usually evaporates on its us light and will resurrect the a very pleasing filled by hand. France, we say that the wines are “having their Easter” own, it happens to vines hit by hail because their vines. vintage It will serve 120 people and comes in a when they enter this phase. This simply means they photosynthesis is disturbed and the must is deprived ♦ made-to-measure wooden crate. As for the are starting to work hard. of nitrogen. During fermentation, the yeasts lack this ♦ A Nebuchadnezzar ♦ In the winery, the indulgent price, it’s top secret! nitrogen and produce H2S, which masks the fruity 2011 wines have just been

of Clos Blanc ! contents The reds began their malos earlier. Because they are taste of the wine. This was particularly evident on less acid than the whites, the environment is more bottled, with one in particular The bottle’s new home is the London our Pommard that was 75% destroyed by hail and filling an exceptional favorable for lactic bacteria. Some villages have even from which we made just five rather than the usual wine boutique Hedonism, Nebuchadnezzar. The scarce finished theirs altogether. 18 pièces. where every bottle is stored and precious 2012 vintage, ♦ ♦ ♦ Six months’ ageing for in optimum conditions The cellar that is home to the red premier and grand still in barrels over Easter, is now confirming its sublime and At this early stage, there is a lot of color, good THE 2012s: the wines are with individual temperature and crus is also our coldest, and as such, the malos are concentration, maturity and fine acidity making up outstanding character. humidity controls. starting late, which foretells of a great vintage for the personality of these young and very promising ♦ hard at work keeping. Indeed, the long six-month latent period, 2012 wines. In the vines, we have been planting and are redoubling our efforts An exceptional container to further enhance the levels of excellence in our vineyards. This is a long-term investment, given that a vine only really starts to for wines whose value is All the wines from measured by the mouthful! produce in its seventh year. ♦ the Domaine have been Lastly, we present three wines ready for enjoying. certified organic ♦ The Boisset Family and the Domaine de la Vougeraie team.

THIS SEASON’S WINES Vougeot Vougeot Nuits-Saint-Georges Clos du Prieuré rouge Clos du Prieuré Blanc 1er Cru Les Corvées Pagets 2007 Monopole 2007 2007

A wonderfully bright color that is still A brilliant golden color A ruby red color with tinges of evolving An open nose with aromas of white terracotta A very open and floral nose fruits and flowers A very open nose with an earthiness Impressively silky texture in the A paradoxical wine that is both combined with red berries, violets mouth fresh and rich, without the slightest and spice, giving way to a smooth heaviness and pleasantly sophisticated mouth domaine de la vougeraie – 7 bis, rue de l’Eglise – 21700 PREMEAUX-PRISSEY A smooth, moreish wine that would that is all about volume, concentra- be perfect with roast veal Perfect with guinea fowl cooked with tion and elegance FRANCE – www.domainedelavougeraie.com either cabbage or grapes To be enjoyed with aged goat cheese TEL : (33) 3 80 62 48 25 – FAX : (33) 3 80 61 25 44 or a mature Camembert [email protected] Ageing the 2011s comes to a close A very pleasing vintage in the vineyard The last reds of this vintage were bottled in High-density replanting early February. The whites, which finished their malolactic fermentation in December, Our experience of vines planted this way has Half of the three hectares of “Aux Thorey”, followed in early April. They enjoyed shown that the more competition between the the heart of the Nuits-Saint-Georges Le Clos long ageing of 14 months in the barrel vines, the fewer grapes grow on each plant and de Thorey Monopole appellation, were also and four months in vats to harmonize the different characteristics of each barrel in the higher the concentration. We expect five pulled up and left to rest for a year. This is also one single cuvée, with the quest – as always bunches instead of eight. a tricky situation because part of the plot is on – for purity, sophistication and perfectly ♦ a slope with very little earth over a strip of rock, integrated oak. Firstly, we pulled up the old vines. Then we dug which limits how much you can work the land. The Clos Blanc, our gem of a wine, will down 20cms to remove the roots. We plowed It has a wonderful orientation and produces enjoy two extra months in the vat for even it flat and in the fall, after some careful soil sophisticated, pure wines with good minerality greater harmony. analysis, enriched it with organic fertilizer. that follow the tradition of its neighbor, Nuits- The 2011 wines will be delivered as planned Rich in humus, it was mechanically dug into Saint-Georges Premier Cru Les Damodes. The in September, after resting for 5-6 months, which is essential after the shock of the soil. This is the only time we will give the first harvest will be in 2016 when the vines are bottling. Moreover, we prefer not to deliver soil such a complete feed to help the vines three years old. For the past three years, a major replanting wines in summer because, despite all our develop. In future, we will only use organic ♦ campaign has been underway at the estate, precautions, they could be exposed to heat. compost top dressings. The choice of rootstock Lastly, 0.11ha (0.27 acres) of Gevrey- with a view to upping the quality of those vines The 2011 vintage could be described as was dependent on the limestone. Chambertin Les Evocelles have just been “normal” in terms of volumes, with an we have inherited to obtain even better grapes A selection of very delicate with small, concentrated berries ♦ planted on some land that had been left to average yield of 30hl/ha for the reds and for our elite wines. For the Vougeot Premier Cru Les Cras, this waste. In 2010, we planted half a hectare, and 40hl/ha for the whites. Given the complex ♦ nature of the raw materials, we performed 0.7ha vine (1.7 acres) was pulled up in fall 2011, in 2011 another hectare. The first harvest will We have, therefore, replanted the three this feat thanks to strict sorting and the and we had to wait a year to give the soil time to therefore be in 2014 of 2015, depending on the vineyards of Vougeot Premier Cru Les Cras, percentage of grapes that were fermented rest. Here, an excess of limestone prevents the quality of the first harvest. Nuits-Saint-Georges Clos de Thorey, and in whole bunches, which resulted in plants absorbing iron. They turn yellow, and wonderful wines, particularly for the major Gevrey-Chambertin Les Evocelles, making a both photosynthesis and growth are slowed appellations. The vintage is characterized total of 2.31 hectares. This was done between down. So we chose rootstock that would be by a low degree of alcohol and low acidity 4-6 March, under a waning moon to encourage making for balanced wines to drink resistant to these high levels of limestone, and the root system to develop, with the young relatively young. The whites, which are which is already two years old. With soil like plants put directly into the ground before the a little less acid than the 2010s, offer less this, the choice was a tough one because we keeping potential than older . rain. didn’t want to add iron every year to balance ♦ 2011 is also the first vintage for our the soil so we had to choose a massal selection, precious grand cru Bâtard-Montrachet, We decided to increase the plantation density, while for other vines on less demanding soils which will be available for discovery in just going form the usual 10,000 vines per hectare we were able to opt for four different selections a few months time. We must be patient! to 13,605 thanks to spacing between the plants (three massal and one clonal) which will bring of 70cm instead of one meter. We’ve made the greater genetic diversity. space between the rows a little larger – from ♦ 1m to 1.05m – to allow the tractor to pass more easily. This is even more important for us because we don’t weedkill the grass between our vines and working the soil is crucial to eliminate the weeds.