2009

This vintage made you understand the word humility. Along with tolerance, two major virtues according to Confusius… Cold winter with lots of rain in December. Memorable storm in February damaging the Clos des Fées’ big oak tree. Nice budding, homogenous flowering and a perfect spring. Lots of Tramontane during the summer, without a drop of rain between June and October. It was the year where controlling grass was essential for water was scarce… That put any doubt about the importance of plowing to rest. It is clear to me that it is a key component for producing great wines in times of global warming. If cultivating more than 100 plots often drives us crazy throughout the year, in this kind of vintage, we bless the heavens for having such a diversity of terroir, early, late; as it gives us such a broad palette of grapes available at harvest time. Great year for olives.