Arnaud Mortet said that he began harvesting on 3 September. He was one of the lucky ones, with overall yield of about 40 hl/ha. (2016 will be much lower because Mortet has significant holdings in areas that were hit by the 27 April 2016.) Arnaud said that he had no problem with the drought over the summer, a prime cause of low yields at other estates, because he works the soil very deep, encouraging the wines to go down, and then stopped working the soil early. Maturities were the highest ever for the estate with potential alcohols in the range of 12.5-13.6/7º. He used a fair amount of whole clusters in the vinification. Malolactic fermentations finished between March and June, which is not late for this estate.
The trend here to less use of whole clusters and less new oak continues, adding freshness and elegance to the wines.
Mortet fans will be happy that the number of offerings has increased in significant ways with new premiers and grands crus in recent years, but those mindful of price will still find good village wines at lower prices.