WHAT´S NEW ?


PFV Members 2001 VINTAGE REPORT - Part 2,

    A first report on the Vintage 2001 from PFV members :
  • Weingut Egon Müller-Scharzhof – Saar:
    2001 might go down in history as a year of extreme contrasts. The winter was mild and wet with everything pointing toward yet another very early bud-break. April however was quite wintry with a sharp frost on God Friday that wiped out all the flowers on the fruit trees and good quantities of snow over the Easter Holidays. The vineyards fortunately were not affected.
    May and June were fine and warm and the wines quickly recovered the time lost in April. The flowering was on time if not a bit early and finished quickly and regularly. July and August too were fine and hot with well-distributed rain and by the end of August the grapes were in magnificent shape.
    September was untimely cold and very rainy and only the cold prevented the widespread inset of grey rot. At the end of September another 2000 vintage with all its problems was the most likely scenario. October however was the exact opposite and under sunny skies the insetting Botrytis developed into noble rot. We started harvesting on October 15th and from the beginning set out to pick these grapes separately. For a record breaking 3 weeks the weather remained exceptionally fine and by early November we were picking Trockenbeerenauslese in the Scharzhofberg. By November 10th we were almost finished when torrential rain set in and on November 13th we brought in the last grapes.
    The average yield was very low, not exceeding 30 hl/ha for the second year in a row. The quality however is very good and first tastings show the wines to have a good concentration and a firm mineral core.
    Because the harvest took us so long there is a wide difference between grapes from early harvest and those from late harvest. While at the beginning the acidity levels soared making us wonder if we should not wait a bit longer, in the end they had come down so low that we were happy to have the early grapes to assure balanced wines.
    This means that we will do more blending than usually and less single barrels and it means that we will have very little Spätlese because most of our Spätlese grapes fall into this later category and will probably be blended into the Kabinett for balance.
    While 2001 will not be another 1997 or 1999, it is certainly on a par with 1995 and the wines might even show very similar characteristics to that vintage.
  • Pol Roger – Champagne:
    After so many good years in the nineties, it would have looked ungrateful to complain. So we won’t! And we will try to forget it as soon as possible.
    It is sad, when you think about the year we had had: the budding was perfect, as was the flowering, and although July was wet, no damage was done. August was very dry and sunny, all of which seemed to promise a great vintage at the end of the cycle.
    And yet, and yet ….. September then arrived with “tons” of water and cool temperatures verging on cold. The ripening was stopped in its tracks, and gave juice with insufficient acidity.
    Thus, in the end, the vintage produced musts without any real potential for ageing, although (and this is also important) entirely clean on the palate. So the year will be an average “non vintage year”, which we will improve by the addition of some excellent wines from the Pol Roger reserves.
    On the commercial front, Pol Roger has launched Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill 1993 and the full range of 1995 vintage cuvées. According to different markets, these wines will be appearing between now and March 2002.
    We have changed our distributors in Japan (to JALUX), and in Switzerland (to MOVENPICK) and have made new appointments such as LES CAVES DE MARIGOT in Anguilla.
  • Symington – Port:
    The winter of 2001 was quite extraordinary for the amount of rain that was experienced. The deluge continued for five months causing widespread damage. The river Douro in Oporto broke its banks six times during this period, and in the Douro valley roads collapsed and buildings were irreparably damaged due to subsidence.
    Bud burst occurred in mid-March, and extra work was required in the vineyard due to the high levels of humidity. Flowering took place in May under favourable conditions, both in the lower lying areas and higher areas of the valley. It became clear at this point that the Douro would have a large vintage.
    However in mid-June an excessively hot period brought about a significant reduction in the crop size. This was mainly due to the recently formed bunches being exposed to the extreme heat in a period where the bunches are particularly sensitive and the shading produced by the canopy was not yet sufficient to protect them. The reduction in yields clearly contributed to the concentration of the wines produced.
    Temperatures through July and August were not excessive and useful amounts of rain were experienced. Maturation took place under favourable conditions. Very little rain was then experienced between the end of August and the beginning of the vintage, this caused a further reduction in production and in some cases Baumés were unusually high and acidity levels below normal, mainly in the Tinta Barroca.
    The fruit was in excellent condition when picking began on 20th September at Quinta dos Malvedos, and the best wines were made from Touriga Nacional and Touriga Francesa, which achieved perfect maturity. Yields at the Quinta were low (as expected), with only 0,96Kg per vine. The wineries 3 robotic "lagares" now in their second year, worked extremely well. With the hot nights experienced in the Upper Douro during the vintage, the robotic "lagares'" ability to cool the fermentations was extremely useful and in fact gave them a clear edge on traditional "lagares" which do not normally have temperature control. Even when the traditional lagares have temperature control, it can at best be sporadic and difficult to spread evenly across the must in the stone tank.
    At Quinta da Vila Velha and Quinta de Val de Malhadas (both privately owned by members of the Symington family), the grapes achieved ideal ripeness and were picked in excellent health. At this point it can be said that the overall quality of the vintage is good. Promising and structured wines were produced.
  • Torres – Penedes :
    A GREAT HARVEST - IN QUALITY TERMS- BUT SMALL IN QUANTITY
    On this evening of Sunday 14 October, the rain is pouring down on the vineyards of Mas La Plana. It is comforting to hear it fall in the knowledge that, just yesterday evening, the tractors brought in the last of the Cabernet Sauvignon from the vineyards in Tarragona.
    The harvest started early and also ended early. And the forecasts that augured a small harvest have been confirmed: between 25% and 30% less than normal (depending on the vineyard of origin) due to the spring frosts, the year’s lower flowering rate, and drought.
    To the contrary, in terms of quality, the result has been excellent. Extremely healthy grapes with a great wealth of sugars, aromas and tannins. We had frosts during the spring - that fateful night of 21 April! - that especially affected the mountain vineyards (Chardonnay and Pinot Noir).
    Then, the summer was very dry and fairly hot. However, we had providential rain at the end of July, just before the veraison, with the rainfall being well distributed over the length and breadth of the entire Catalan geography. This was decisive for the high quality that the bunches of grapes have amassed.
    Once the harvest had begun, there was very little rain in September and there was no sign of Botrytis at any of the vineyards. However, once we were into the month of October, it rained with a certain intensity and the Riesling growing on the hills near to Fransola was able to develop a degree of Botrytis in its most noble version.
    In general, the most outstanding factors have been:
    - lower quantity 25% - 30% less than a normal harvest.
    - excellent colour in the red varieties without exception.
    - magnificent state of health of the grapes harvested.
    - this was the first year that we harvested grapes from our new vineyards in Priorato and Tremp (Costers del Segre).
  • Vega Sicilia – Ribera del Duero:
    Once again, 2001 has been a year for the "good wine grower". It was characterised by moderate temperatures and intermittent rain until spring, a climate atypical of the continental influence that characterises the Ribera del Duero, which resulted in early budding, which was then interrupted by the only frosts of the year, between 21st and 27th April. These frosts caused losses of around 70%.
    Spring and summer encouraged excessive and rapid growth of the vine. At the end of July, the vineyard was organised, reviewing the areas that had been affected by the early frosts, revealing racemes with different levels of ripeness on the same vine, which would have hindered the harvest. To avoid that possibility, we green pruned the vine in order to even out the overall ripeness of the Vega Sicilia vineyard.
    All these interesting meteorological factors led us to think that the wine that was to be made would at some point undergo an imbalance in the maturing process. For this reason, after lengthy discussion we reached the conclusion not to risk making Vega Sicilia “Unico”, and only the most exceptional batches were set aside for Valbuena 5º.
    Harvesting began on 2nd October and ended on 13th October, with a collection of 21 Hl per hectare.
    This vine selection work in a climatologically special year has enabled a Valbuena 5º 2001 rich in tannins, high fruit content and a lasting finish in the mouth.


Back