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Burgundy 2023 vintage report

 

Words: Adam Bruntlett
Published: 15th November 2024

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The 2023 vintage in Burgundy offers a rare combination of quality and quantity, says Adam Bruntlett. Here, our Burgundy Buyer digs deep into the growing season that has yielded such delicious, drinkable and charming wines.

Burgundy 2023 is the rarest of birds, offering both quality and quantity. For once, Burgundy experienced a straightforward growing season, producing a plentiful crop of ripe fruit. In both red and white, 2023 is a vintage of pure pleasure. These are wines where no single element dominates. Each component – alcohol, acidity, tannin, fruit – is in harmony.

Our five weeks of tasting revealed charming, transparent wines. They are arguably more “Burgundian” than recent warm vintages like 2020 or 2022, reflecting more faithfully the individual nuances between villages and vineyards. And they carry an imprint of their growing season: the harvest heatwave reveals itself in the perfectly ripe fruit on the front of the palate; while the relatively cool and wet summer has provided a satisfying, invigorating freshness.

It is worth noting that the 2024 vintage, which will be released in early 2026, is a significantly smaller crop in both colours and particularly for reds. Volumes for some red wines, particularly in the Côte de Nuits, have been described as “catastrophic”; some growers have produced less than 15hl/ha. Many of the most sought-after 2024s will be in extremely short supply, and very tightly allocated as a result. Do keep this in mind when exploring the 2023 vintage.

 

JUMP TO: THE SEASON | IN THE CELLAR | THE RED WINES | THE WHITE WINES

 

 

Overall, 2023 was Burgundy’s warmest year on record. Much of that heat, however, came through warmer nights and higher temperatures during the winter, spring and autumn; in comparison to 2019, 2020 and 2022, the summer was relatively cool. The growing season was less luminous than 2003 or 2018, a factor which ultimately helped to preserve acidity in the final wines.

The mild winter led to a relatively early budbreak, in late March. The mercury dropped to freezing point on 5th and 6th April, bringing the nascent buds perilously close to destruction. Thankfully, damage was limited. Some Chablis growers reported minor losses, with no impact on final yields.

Warm weather with regular rainfall ensured the vines developed rapidly. In the Côte d’Or, flowering began around 29th May. Flowering was very successful for Pinot Noir, less so for Chardonnay. While a big crop of Pinot Noir was on the cards, there was a far less generous fruit-set for Chardonnay.

The summer was warm without ever spiking to the highs of recent years. It was interspersed with regular rainfall, a double-edged sword that kept the vines watered while increasing the threat of mildew (which was easily managed and never took hold).

Temperatures spiked to 32-36°C between 7th-11th July. The hot spell was then broken by a thunderstorm, with hail taking a diagonal route through the Côte de Beaune from St Aubin to Volnay via Blagny and Meursault. In Meursault, Genevrières, Perrières and Bouchères were all touched; Volnay’s lower-lying vineyards also suffered. Fortunately, warm and dry weather followed, and the vines bounced back.

Successful Pinot Noir flowering meant many bunches on the vines and a large potential crop, calling for yield management. This is never an exact science. It can be done at various stages of the vine’s cycle, with various consequences depending on when the crop is thinned. Quality-focused growers prune short and de-bud; this means their potential crop will at best conform to the maximum permitted yield. Come July, however, even the most diligent growers found that nature had delivered them a substantial future crop. Green harvest (dropping fruit that would be unlikely to ripen) was the norm. Indeed, some also reported a subsequent “pink” harvest of less-ripe grapes in August, allowing the vines to focus on ripening fewer bunches.

Another small heat spike occurred from 17th-24th August, followed by unseasonably cool weather and welcome rain. For the rest of the month, temperatures struggled to exceed 20°C. With such a generous crop, ripening was gradual. Harvest began in the Côte de Beaune at the end of August, with the Mâconnais following shortly after.

September began with a heatwave. Temperatures raced to 30°C, hitting the mid-30s by 5th September and staying there until a storm on the 11th. The heat pushed alcohol levels on at an alarming pace; it became a race to pick before they rose too high. Conditions were dangerous for the pickers due to the heat. They were also problematic for bringing the grapes in at optimum quality. Growers started picking earlier in the morning, finishing before the hottest part of the day. Those who harvest by machine felt vindicated; they were able to pick more quickly and in the cool of the night. All fruit was in by the end of the month. The rest of September was more typical, with moderate temperatures and cool evenings.

Fruit quality was widely reported as high, though the weather had led to some burnt or shrivelled red grapes. With such a generous crop, it was easy to reject anything in less than perfect condition.

Alcohol levels generally sat between 12.5-13.5%. There were good levels of tartaric acid, much of the malic acid having been burnt off by the hot and sunny weather in August and September. As in other warm vintages, the acid profile is therefore surprisingly firm, built as it is on a solid spine of salty, citrus-like tartaric acid.

 

 

Bringing the fruit in quickly, sorting it and having sufficient space in tanks presented significant hurdles. Most growers are now equipped with the means to cool the fruit before sorting and beginning the winemaking process. This is essential when picking amid such heat. Whole-bunch use was frequently reduced for practical reasons; de-stemmed fruit takes up less space.

Some growers decided to bleed off a small amount of the first juice from their tanks to concentrate the reds a little. Malolactic fermentations took place quite quickly due to the low malic-acid levels. Growers reported that the wines gained significantly in complexity through the rest of their élevage. Our own tastings throughout the year confirmed this: the whites have picked up freshness; the reds have filled out. This trend should continue further over winter for the majority of growers who have not yet bottled their wines.

 

 

Pinot Noir is a pernickety grape. If overcropped, it can deliver thin and watery wines. The concern with 2023’s generous yield was that the reds might lack stuffing or concentration. Thankfully, in the hands of serious and quality-focused growers, such worries were unfounded. The reds are surprisingly concentrated without ever falling into over-ripeness. They are aromatic and perfumed, with clean and pure aromas of blue or red berries and pronounced floral notes – particularly for those with some whole bunches. Their expressive and sophisticated bouquets will please true fans of red Burgundy.

The “charming” theme continues on the palate. There is a lovely, creamy character to the fruit on the initial attack, which fills the palate in a satisfying fashion, without ever becoming cloying. The finishes are then pleasingly fresh, saline and thirst-quenching. In short, these are wines that you want to drink.

It is difficult to draw comparisons to other vintages. There are some similarities to 2017 in terms of pure pleasure and drinkability, though the 2023s are more concentrated. The wines will drink well from an early age, but don’t underestimate their potential for ageing.

 

 

The white wines are also easy to love. Chardonnay tends to be less affected by a more generous crop than Pinot Noir; with yields for serious growers typically a little below the permitted maximum, dilution was not a concern. Acidity, fruit and alcohol are all in harmony without any one element dominating.

There is a little stylistic variation. Some growers chose to pick earlier, arguably slightly short of full ripeness, to preserve more acidity. Others preferred to wait a little, to obtain more ripeness and concentration of flavour while sacrificing some acidity. Both styles are successful, providing something for all palates. The fruit profile varies from citrus for the earlier-picked wines to more white and occasionally yellow fruit on those harvested later. In all cases, there is good definition and delineation between villages and vineyards.

These wines do not have the concentration and structure of the 2022s, though there is arguably more transparency and Burgundian typicity in 2023. While the whites do not perhaps hit the highs of top vintages like 2017, 2020 or 2022, they are more elegant than 2019; purer than 2021; and more concentrated than 2018. They should provide plenty of pleasure in the short and medium term, with the grandest wines offering good ageing potential for 15 years or more.