(Please see my overview of the vintage here.)
Harvesting began on 29 August, the same date as in 2017.
Yields are about 35hl/ha for the red grands crus, 35-42 hl/ha for the 1er crus. There was very little sorting out of grapes. Skins were thick, there were good quantities of juice. Alcohols are in the range of 13.5º-14.5º. There was no acidification. 25-30% new wood for village premier cru reds, no more than 60% for grands crus.
Malo-lactic fermentations finished in spring, April-June/July, which is normal timing here.
All wines were still in barrel and had not been racked when I tasted.
This is a very successful set of wines, especially the Côte de Nuits grands crus.
2018 Meursault Clos de Mazeray
Floral nose. Finesse, creamy texture, weighty on palate, blueberry and other dark fruits. 35% whole clusters. (89-91)
2018 Beaune 1er Cru Clos de la Féguine
Light on palate within this selection of wines, dark fruits, dense, long. 100% destemmed. (89-91)
2018 Beaune 1er Cru Grèves
Dark fruits, concentrated, intense, creamy, with tannins. Good length. Very young — should age well. 100% destemmed. (90-92)
2018 Beaune 1er Cru Champs Pimonts
Good finesse and energy in this selection of wines. 40-50 year-old vines. 100% destemmed. (90-92)
2018 Pommard 1er cru Charmots
Finesse for Pommard, dark fruits, some spice, medium-weight. Good depth. 100% whole clusters. Very old vines. (90-92)
2018 Volnay 1er Cru Santenots
Intense, creamy, light in context of these wines, good freshness, dark fruits. Younger vines, now about 23 years old, from Clos des Santenots. 100% destemmed. (91-93)
2018 Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Santenots
Freshness, dark fruits, more depth and a bit more finesse than the previous. Good length. Some tannins on finish. Average age 70 years. 100% destemmed. (92-94)
2018 Corton-Bressandes
Depth, dark fruits, Bressandes earthiness, some minerality, good energy. 35% whole cluster. (92-94)
2018 Clos-Vougeot
Dense, tannins present but are round. Dark fruits. Some elegance, and lightness for Clos-Vougeot. 35% whole clusters. (92-94)
2018 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru
Dense but with freshness of Chambertin, fairly closed for now, but there is promise. 100% destemmed. From vines in Chambertin that are now 23 years old. (90-93)
2018 Chambertin
Spicy dark fruits, pure, energy, fresh, finesse in this range. 70 year-old vines. Also includes grapes from Clos-de-Bèze (which Prieur has been doing since 2006-2007). (94-96)
2018 Musigny
Finesse, purity, depth, dark fruits. Great finesse here. Medium-weight, but light on tongue; good length. 100% destemmed. (94-96)
2018 Echézeaux
Finesse, violets, freshness, lightness, sensuality, good energy for vintage. Surprising to see this placed after the Musigny in the order of tasting, but its quality showed that this placement was deserved. 100% destemmed, Champs Traversins climat. (94-97)