Video: Interview of Ludivine Griveau, Hospices estate winemaker about the 2017 vintage, 2 months before the wine auction

An intense and shining vintage, generous at last

Jean-David CAMUS from www.hospices-beaune.com by Albert Bichot interviews  Hospices de Beaune winemaker Ludivine GRIVEAU about the 2017 vintage at the Hospices estate.

• A very early vintage, with the start of the vegetative cycle early April.
• End of April : severe frost damage many French wine regions. Fortunately Burgundy (except in Chablis) is not hit by frost, a
  very good thing for the winegrowers after several difficult years of low yields.
• May : generous and fast bud burst. The vines are very productive, as if they wanted to get some revenge after the previous
  years and show their best.
• Pinot Noir flowering takes place in perfect conditions in a few sunny days. More delicate flowering for Chardonnay, with
  alternate days of rain and sun. Some coulure (partial fruit set) will impact future yields.
• A classic Burgundian summer, with some very hot days at the end of June and July. August is sometimes milder, with some
  beneficial days of rain. Ludivine Griveau makes sure quality and yields do not go too high, with some green harvest or
  disbudding where and when necessary. Keeping a good concentration is the final objective to reach top quality.
• Harvest start a 100 days after flowering: 27th of August for the first Chardonnay in Pouilly-Fuissé (Maconnais) and on the 1st of
  September for the Côte de Beaune vineyards. Pinot Noir start to be harvested on the 2d of September for Côte de Beaune,
  then Côte de Nuits Vineyard. Last grapes are brought in at the winery on the 21st of September. Yields in red are around 42 hl /
  ha. In white, they’re only just above those of 2016 and remain limited. 2017 is the most productive vintage since 2009 though.
• Vinification : Ludivine talks about wines with a ”placid strength”, with some initial restraint character that require some long
  vatting (18 to 19 days in red) and a stronger than usual press level to extract the whites’ potential.
• Globally, Ludivine thinks the wines are superb, with great colours, very silky tannins. Nice natural degrees between 12.8 and
  13.2. Great balance sugar / acids. A very nice and promising combination of elegance and power.