David Duband - Louis Auguste - Bourgogne Hautes Côtes De Nuits | French Red Wine

Terroir: This wine comes from a cooler site close to forest on a high, steep elevation. It is a lovely wine with beautifully delineated lines and is more fresh with acidity than David’s other entry level wines (Bourgogne and Côte de Nuits Village.) The vineyards sit just outside of David’s hometown, Chévannes, in the Hautes-Côtes-de-Nuits. David explained that these vines planted mostly in the 1970’s are on average three degrees Celsius less throughout the growing season than the Côte de Nuits, thus delaying their picking time by weeks. It can be a little backward upon opening but hits stride 15 minutes or more after opening.

Vinification: Stems are included in all Duband wines (average: 30-40% for entry-level, 70-80% on Village/1er Cru, 80-100% Grand Cru). A small dose of SO2 (7ppm) is made at crush and pigeage (punchdowns) is made by foot to not break stems and begins after fermentation starts—5 to 7 total throughout the fermentation. Remontage (pump over) is only used if there is H2S (reductive elements), which is very common in organic wines. The fermentation is usually 17-18 days, then pressed and settled in tanks for 2-3 weeks to allow for whole cluster ferments to settle more clearly—destemmed ferments clarify quicker. Racked for the first time before the end of the year.

Aging: Aged 14 months in 225l barrels (50% old wood on Grand Cru, 60-70% old wood on all others), racked to steel tanks 2 months before bottling. No fining or filtration.