Gevrey Chambertin Petite Chapelle 1er Cru 2014

(only 40% vendange entier, as with the Charmes-Chambertin): Full ruby-red. Vibrant aromas and flavors of blackberry, violet, licorice pastille, bitter chocolate and wild mint. Boasts compelling sweetness and texture, not to mention inner-mouth tension. Finishes with surprisingly sweet tannins and distinct minerality. Dugat noted that this wine started off hard but that the racking brought much more refinement. "Two thousand fourteen is a good year," said Bernard Dugat."The wines are delicious and they will evolve relatively quickly, before the 2013s. Thanks to their round tannins, they're more harmonious than the 2013." Dugat started harvesting on September 15, bringing in fruit with about 12. 5% potential alcohol and chaptalizing to roughly 13%. He attributes this level of ripeness to the fact that he's "constantly in the vines cutting off underripe fruit," adding that he kept "the good foliage" in 2014, which allowed the ripening process to continue, bringing rounder tannins and more flesh to the wines. Dugat vinified most of his 2014s with a high percentage of whole clusters--between 70% and 100%. Most of the wines were racked in July or August following the malolactic fermentations. Dugat ages all of his crus in 100% new oak; he has exclusively used François Frères barrels since 1999. Incidentally, as of 2015 this estate is certified organic.

Score: 91 - 93

Stephen Tanzer, Vinous.com 01 November 2015