Jean-Louis Trapet said that he began harvesting on 5 or 6 September with the whites. Malo-lactic fermentations occurred in spring for some wines, summer for others. Up through the Gevrey-Clos Prieur, 30-50% whole clusters were used; the premier cru Capita and the grands crus are made entirely with whole clusters.
These are outstanding examples of how this vintage should supply wines for the near and medium-term to drink while allowing waiting time for some other recent vintages that are more structured.
We begin with the whites:
2017 Bourgogne Chardonnay
This wine has buttery aromas and flavors, a smooth texture, purity, and viscosity, but it remains fresh and precise. 89/A
2017 Marsannay
The white Marsannay is a bit more mineral and focused than the Bourgogne. The wine is fresh with a smooth texture and good length. 90/A
Next, the reds:
2017 Bourgogne-Passetoutgrains A Minima
This unsulphured wine is half from Pinot Noir, half from Gamay, and the vines date to 1965. The wine shows good minerality and fresh cassis fruit with roundness and a smooth texture. It is simple but pleasing. 86/B
2017 Bourgogne Pinot Noir
The Bourgogne is mineral and pure with precise strawberry fruit and good freshness. 88/A
2017 Côte de Nuits-Villages Meix Fringues
This wine is crisp and pure with cassis fruit that is quite frank. The wine is medium-weight and has a smooth texture. (88-91)
2017 Marsannay
Trapet’s red Marsannay shows stony dark fruit aromas and flavors, especially plums and blackberries. The wine has great freshness and is medium-weight and has a smooth texture. (89-91)
2017 Gevrey-Chambertin
The straight village Gevrey shows red and dark fruits and a bit more structure than the Marsannay and more breadth. The wine has good minerality and stoniness in the nose and mouth with moderate acidity. (89-91)
2017 Gevrey-Chambertin Ostrea
Trapet’s Gevrey, Ostrea shows more structure than the regular Gevrey, with minerality, red and dark fruits, and lightness on the tongue. Overall, there’s more finesse in this wine, but also more tannin showing. (89-92)
2017 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Petite Chapelle
The Gevrey-Petite Chapelle has dark fruit with great precision and clarity. The moderate acidity keeps the wine from having its high energy and tension that I usually associate with the vineyard, but the wine is not deficient. (90-92)
2017 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos Prieur
A step up is the Gevrey-Clos Prieur. This wine has strawberry and dark fruits, some exoticism, good energy, smoothness, and quality tannins with structure for aging. (92-94)
2017 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Capita
Capita is from vineyards where the production is too small to produce separately — in this vintage, En Ergot, Les Corbeaux, and Aux Combottes. This wine has spiciness in the nose. The mouth shows more purity, precision, and focus than the previous wines, with red fruits, freshness, and a very straightforward structure. (93-95)
2017 Chapelle-Chambertin
Trapet’s Chapelle-Chambertin is mineral, stony, and spicy in the nose. The mouth shows dark fruit, but less tension than in most years. Still, there’s good energy, freshness, and concentration here and real density of fruit. (93-96)
2017 Latricières-Chambertin
The Latricières-Chambertin features dark berry fruits in the nose and mouth. This is a rather cold terroir, but in 2017 there’s somewhat less structure than usual. The wine has richness, stoniness, moderate acidity, and more weight than the Chapelle-Chambertin. (93-96)
2017 Chambertin
The Chambertin is crystalline but relaxed and seemingly not as concentrated as the two previous wines. The wine shows some salinity, dark fruits, and good length in the mouth. (93-96)