Wine News ArchiveHarvest 2001 in Sauternes areaIn Sauternes more than in any other appellation of Bordeaux area, the climate is crucial for the quality of the harvest. In order to produce this world-renowned dessert wine, the grapes - Sémillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscadelle - are only picked up when they are attacked by a bacteria called Botrytis Cinerea. However, this "noble rot" only develops in very precise climatic conditions: morning fogs in September and October. Its effect on the grapes also evolves with time, which makes it necessary for pickers to harvest several times and to sort each grape by hand, picking the fully rotten ones and leaving the others. This year, the weather conditions were ideal. Grapes reached perfect maturity at the beginning of September. Rain came in at the right moment, at the end of September, followed by the famous morning fogs which enabled the noble rot to spread and develop quickly. Then sunshine and wind allowed for a quick and homogenous concentration of sugars. This vintage will definitely produce a rich concentrated dessert wine boasting perfect fruit jam and roasted aromas. Check our great selection of Sauternes. Harvest 2001 in Bordeaux The harvest is now over in most Bordeaux Chateaux (except in Sauternes area) and the grapes brought to the wineries in excellent condition, with good maturity and natural sugar, were once again a precious gift from Mother Nature... and from the winegrowers! The weather for this vintage has been very similar to 2000. Maturation of the grapes during August has been assisted by 233 hours of sunshine with temperatures averaging around 22.6°C and rainfall at 39.4mm. This compares favourably with records over the past 30 years showing averages of 249 hours of sunshine, 19.9°C and 55mm rain during the same period. If the climate is vital to produce a great vintage, a lot of work is also done by the winegrowers in the vineyards. Most Chateaux, wether it be in Saint-Emilion area or in the Médoc, have adopted this policy and always take great care in pruning vines, controlling yields, removing leaves, hand-picking and hand sorting the grapes. Once again, this hard work allowed a slow and constant maturation process which now results in a perfectly healthy harvest with exceptional degrees of maturity and highly refined tanins... Although it is still early to describe the vintage, those elegant tanins will definitely be one of the main characteristics of vintage 2001. Promising harvest in Bordeaux... After a rainy Winter and Spring, July and especially August allowed the vineyard to catch up with time. Although harvesting will probably start slightly later than 2000 and 1999, the vintage 2001 is still among the earliest vintages of the past 30 years. For the moment, the vineyard is perfectly healthy and the last 2 sunny weeks allowed for an homogeneous ripening of the grapes. The wine-Unions and official institutes are carefully following the evolution of grapes and should announce in the next few days the exact date for the traditional "Ban des Vendanges", that is to say the official opening of the harvesting season. Harvesting for white grape varieties started around september 15. Merlot and Cabernet Franc will be picked around September 22-24. Cabernet Sauvignon, which is a late varietal, will come to maturity at the end of the month or beginning of October. It is still too early to bet on this vintage as the 2 or 3 weeks to come will play a vital part in the quality and maturity of the grapes... However, if the weather remains as sunny as it currently is in Bordeaux area, 2001 will definitely be an outstanding vintage and certainly better than the 2000 one. And in California too!! This year, early summer heat in California and lower yields caused grapes to ripen quickly. If ripening keeps on the same pace for the next and crucial weeks, most vineyards will harvest a crop with a great potential. However, 2001 has not been an easy year. Weather fluctuations earlier in the year kept growers on their toes and in the beginning of April, temperatures went down as the North Coast suffered its worst frost in 30 years. Sparkling-wine producers started crush with Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier in the first two weeks of August, with some producers noting reduced Chardonnay crops due to the severe frost that struck the North Coast in April. While most of August was mild, weather fluctuations earlier in the year kept growers on their toes. Budbreak occurred about 10 days earlier than normal this spring, but in the beginning of April, temperatures plummeted as the North Coast suffered its worst frost in 30 years. The frost reduced crop size at various sites, and vineyards with smaller yields tend to ripen more quickly. Vine growth accelerated during an unusually warm May and June, but slowed when conditions turned cool in July. |
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