The 2009 Morey St. Denis 1er Cru is soft and textured, with no hard edges. The warmth of the vintage comes through beautifully in this inviting, textured Burgundy. The finish turns explosive, with generous red fruit that saturates the palate. This up-front, juicy wine appears best suited to near-term drinking. Forey works with two parcels with this cuvee; Les Blanchards and Clos Baulet, two 1ers that sit next to each other. The fruit from both sites is vinified together. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2020. Regis Forey began harvesting on September 13. His wines did a total of eight(!) weeks of cuvaison, by far the lengthiest vinifications of any grower I visited. Forey used 100% new oak for all of his 1ers and Grands Crus. The wines were bottled between December, 2010 and February, 2011 with no fining or filtration. These are unusually open, fruit-driven wines, even within the context of 2009. The Grand Crus are not necessarily better than some of the 1ers. I am not sure how well the wines will age, but in most cases they will certainly deliver considerable pleasure early on. Importer: Rosenthal Wine Merchant, Pine Plains, NY; tel. (800) 910-1990