drink now
A very good year with fruity, well-balanced wines
Weather Conditions
A mild and damp winter was followed by a warm spring. Due to variable weather in June, flowering was prolonged over the course of three weeks (rather than the more usual one). Temperatures were relatively low during July, with particularly cool nights, but picked up somewhat in August. A fine September led to a comfortable harvest. The ripeness and concentration of the grapes was uneven.
Best Appellations
A small crop. The growing season was irregular, and the white wines, though good, are not up to the standard of 1959, and would be eclipsed by 1962 and 1964. Quality was patchy. But no particular commune stood out as being better or worse than another.
Best Producers
The 1961s are now very rare: Matrot’s Meursault Perrières, fine, one of the few seen recently. The Lafon’s were fine too.
