Domaine de L'Arlot Nuits St. Georges Clos de l'Arlot 1er Cru(1998)

of 98s chez l'Arlot but I agree with this assessment based on what I did taste. M. de Smet's primary issue with his 99s is that they lack a bit of elegance and finesse. He also candidly concedes that he misjudged the green harvest in July in that they should have pruned even more severely. One other aspect that he is unhappy about was the date of the ban de vendange (officially mandated opening date of the harvest), believing it was several days too late. His pickers were able to compensate somewhat for this in that the grapes were harvested with dispatch because there was virtually no triage (sorting) necessary. Even so, the 1999 Romanée St.-Vivant was harvested at a potential alcohol level of 13.6% and the Clos-de-l'Arlot at 13.4%, which is very high for Burgundy by any standard. M. de Smet believes these alcohol levels are too high to produce the classical style of burgundy he admires and consequently explains why he thinks the ban de vendange was declared too late. As is usual chez l'Arlot, there was very little égrappage (destemming) and the entire vinification process went off without a hitch. The malos were very precocious which means that the wines were unable to feed off the lees for as long as M. de Smet prefers. There is also slightly less new oak in the 1999s because even though 1998 was a short vintage and thus there was an unexpected supply of unused barrels, the additional quantity in 99 more than used what was originally anticipated for the harvest plus all the surplus barrels from the 98 vintage. Overall, despite M. de Smet's misgivings about the style of his 99s, these are wines for those who enjoy their Burgundies built along the lines of finesse and elegance rather than power. While this is not the strongest set of wines I have ever tasted from the Domaine, they are certainly worth your attention, in particular the Clos-des-Forêts. Shows a good deal more Nuits character than did the 1999. There is excellent minerality and generous structure while avoiding any sense of rusticity. As is typical of the Clos-de-l'Arlot wines, this is more about finesse than power; drink this beginning in 2006 to 2012.    (hide)