Capitain-Gagnerot Vosne-Romanee ‘Aux Raviolles’ 2023
Here’s a classic Vosne-Romanee from the elegant single-vineyard ‘Aux Raviolles’, but definitely produced with Capitain flair and finesse. Red like a jewel, with black, black fruit and spices. This is balanced power, velvety and fresh, the classic Vosne ‘fist in a velvet glove’.
BURGUNDY 2023 VINTAGE
The 2023 vintage in Burgundy was marked by abundant yields and a growing season that brought both challenges and rewards, resulting in a harvest that is notable for its charm, increasingly promising for its quality, but troubling for its irregularity.
The BIVB says it was the largest harvest in Burgundy’s history, producing approximately nearly 2 million hectoliters. This enormous crop was by and large healthy, with no signs of stress despite a record-breaking heatwave during the hottest harvest ever.
But let’s step back and look, as we do each year, at the lead-up to the that harvest.
The winter of 2022-23 was very mild and dry; the spring was mild, but wetter; summer was punctuated by storms and then came a heatwave late in the season that took the crop racing towards harvest.
So despite being perhaps less sunny that recent vintages, the heat and regular rains pushed the vines to grow rapidly and the grapes to develop, albeit without serious phytosanitary (oidium and mildew) issues, if the growers were vigilant.
That said, there were those who saw the huge crop coming, and removed lots of buds early in the growing season. This not only helped manage the yield, but it also reduced disease pressure. Some say this may have been the key to quality in 2023.
A hailstorm in mid-July hit Meursault and Volnay hard (with up to 40% loss of the crop).
The harvest saw temperatures soar, with a heatwave pushing daytime highs to around 40 C (104 F). Ripening happened at a frightening speed (one producer friend said that there were no Saturdays or Sundays during harvest). This forced some growers to pick early to preserve as much acidity as possible. The result was a vintage with abundant yields and generally healthy grapes, though quality varied depending on terroir and vineyard management.
It’s important to note that neither Pinot Noir nor Chardonnay like high temperatures and heat-wave harvests. So 2023 is yet another Burgundy vintage where you have to know who made the wine. Well-made whites at the moment are drinking brilliantly, with Chablis getting a lot of attention. The reds have developed slowly, but now, after some time in the bottle, they are loosening up. The fruit on both red and white is splashy. And the acidity levels seem good, considering the hot growing season. It may be a case of good malic acid replacing the lactic. But the results are showing charm. What vintages to compare these to? The whole is not far off of the precedent vintage, 2022 with maybe a little less class. Is particular, the reds remind me of 2017 (which is a personal favorite at the moment), and the whites are a bit like the 2018s, in their ripeness and acidity. Watch out for wines that have a green, vegetal edge; some producers got spooked by the heat and harvested too soon. But you won’t have to worry about that here at burgundywine.com. Enjoy the 2023s for what they are: ripe, juicy and voluptuous.
VOSNE-ROMANEE
COTE DE NUITS
Lying between Flagey-Échezeaux and Nuits-Saint-Georges, Vosne-Romanée holds the middle ground in the Côte de Nuits geographically. But in terms of reputation and fame, it is the jewel in the crown of Burgundian wine villages. With six Grands Crus, every one of them world famous, and enough quality premiers crus vineyards to lead some to say that there is not a bad parcel in the village, Vosne-Romanée is the image of the Cote de Nuits and drives the wine world’s imagination to a style of Pinot Noir that, really, only exists here. For a thousand years, the value of Vosne’s grand cru vineyards has been understood and appreciated. It’s hardly surprising that, unlike most of the rest of Burgundy’s vineyards which are parceled and shared by numerous winemakers, these noble plots have for the most part always been singly-held.
Produced in the communes of and Flagey-Échezeaux, appellation Vosne-Romanée includes 14 premiers crus and 6 grands crus.
Wine
The color red in Vosne-Romanée takes on a different meaning than it has in most other Burgundy appellations. The wines can vary from pure ruby to black tulip and are often quite intense. Or they can be a fiery red darkening to garnet. One of the rules in Pinot Noir appreciation is that, if you are looking for color, you have come to the wrong place. Vosne-Romanée may be the exception. Fruit over spice is the classic nose with strawberry and blackcurrant sitting atop cinnamon and almond. These youthful aromas evolve with age into grown-up notes of cherries in brandy, leather and fur, woodland scents and game. You expect the wine to be a velvety and refined Pinot Noir at its most elegant IT can be a little austere in its youth but the mature wine is fleshy, voluptuous.
Terroirs
The vines grow at altitudes of 250 to 310 meters and face east or, in some cases, slightly south of east. The plots growing the village appellation lie either at the top of the slope or at its foot on either side of the grand cru climats and in some cases reaching the same altitude. The soils are limestone mixed with clayey marls. Topsoil varies from very shallow to a meter deep.
Color
Red wines only - Pinot Noir
Production surface area
1 hectare (ha) = 2.4 acres
153.60 ha (including 56.64 ha Premier Cru)
Food
Powerful and tannic yet voluptuous and meaty leads us to match strong flavors and fibrous textures here. Good-quality poultry, oven-roasted lamb, roasted game birds are obvious choices. But a thick cut steak will match the fullness as well. And spicy poultry preparations are surprisingly well-suited. A less obvious match. but one that works well, is flash sauté of raw foie gras. These wines will stand up to intensely-flavoured cheeses such as Époisses, Langres, Saint-Florentin, or Aisy Cendré. And every wine goes well as Cîteaux.
Appellations
The commune of Vosne-Romanée produces 6 grands crus and the commune of Flagey-Échezeaux 2 grands crus. On the label, the names Vosne-Romanée and Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru may be followed by the name of a specific vineyard, known as a climat.
The following climats are classified as premier cru:
Au-dessus des Malconsorts
Aux Brulées
Aux Malconsorts
Aux Raignots
Clos des Réas
Cros Parantoux
En Orveaux
La Croix Rameau
Les Beaux Monts
Les Chaumes
Les Gaudichots
Les Petits Monts
Les Rouges
Les Suchots
The following climats are village wines from a single vineyard, known as a lieu-dit:
Au-Dessus de la Rivière
Aux Champs Perdrix
Aux Communes
Aux Genaivrières
Aux Jachées
Aux Ormes
Aux Raviolles
Aux Réas
Aux Saules
Bossières
Champs Goudins
La Colombière
La Croix Blanche
La Montagne
Le Pré de la Folie
Les Barreaux
Les Beaux Monts Hauts Rougeots
Les Chalandins
Les Damaudes
Les Jacquines
Les Violettes
Maizières Basses
Maizières Hautes
Porte-Feuilles ou Murailles du Clos
Vigneux
Village