The 2020 Vintage

September 1st 2020

As anticipated, the harvest began very early this year; indeed it began in the Côte de Beaune on August 17th, and even in the Côte de Nuits was under way a week or so later. There seems to be more enthusiasm for the white wines than for the reds. If only we'd had a bit more rain, growers are saying, the reds would have been spectacular. As it is the harvest was very healthy, apart from a little oidium here and there, and the quality is certainly very good, and there is no lack of it.

August 1st 2020

Following an indifferent June, July has been warm and sunny, progressively hotter as the month proceeded. The veraison is now under way, and the harvest is due to start in the last week of the month. The vines are in very good condition, having suffered no damage from either hail or coulure, apart from a bit of frost in Chablis. The crop is also of a decent size, neither too abundant nor too meagre. All in all, 2020, at this stage, looks like being a very good vintage.

July 1st 2020

After a very nice, warm, sunny May, June was, for the most part gloomy and miserable. Temperatures rarely exceeded 20°, and it was also quite rainy. The result was a late and protracted flowering, with some coulure (more beneficial than the otherwise). Temperatures began to rise in the last few days of the month, but so far few have been able to eat out in the evenings.

June 1st 2020

The story so far.

The winter of 2019/2020 was quite cold, but not icy, with only a few brief flurries of snow. At times it was quite windy, but basically quite dry. Temperatures began to rise in the last quarter of March, and this led to an early bud-break, around the 18th March for the Chardonnays, a week later for the Pinots. After a brief cold spell, temperatures again rose, April was generally warm and sunny, and so was May, leading to an early flowering, some two or three weeks ahead of the norm, starting on about the 20th. The crop at this stage seems abundant. So far, so good.