Bâtonnage

Bâtonage is the process of stirring barrels, or any other vessel holding wine to re-suspend lees, consisting mostly of dead yeast. Stirring the lees impacts the texture, aroma and flavour. In addition, the process introduces oxygen as the vessel must be unsealed to insert the stirrer.

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Bâtonnage is the process of stirring barrels, or any other vessel holding wine to re-suspend lees, consisting mostly of dead yeast. Stirring the lees impacts the texture, aroma and flavour. In addition, the process introduces oxygen as the vessel must be unsealed to insert the stirrer. It’s an important part of the élévage of the wine. Typically stirring will be more frequent in the early phase of ageing. Frequency will be determined by experience and tasting the wine. There is little point in stirring the wine more frequently than weekly as the lees takes a week to settle and the impact of the introduction of oxygen could be too severe.

 

Synonyms:
Lees Stirring
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Domaine Jean Marc & Hugues Pavelot Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru 'Aux Guettes' HALF 2020

Pinot Noir from Savigny-lès-Beaune, Côte du Beaune

Domaine Jean Marc & Hugues Pavelot Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru ‘Aux Guettes’ HALF 2020

Fascinating tasting this with Burghound’s note and next to a 2020 Guillard ‘Reniard’ from Gevrey-Chambertin. The villages of Savigny-lès-Beaune and Chorey-lès-Beaune tend to show the sunshine a little more compared to those both further south and north. Dark and clearly ripe, Pavelot has maintained energy and vitality. The tannins build to a crescendo along the palate balancing the richness with a fine acid. The shape and flow are generous, yet linear with that quality tannin and persist

Vintage 2020 375ml
$87
$83ea in any 3+
$79ea in any 6+
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Toro Albalá Don PX Ginés Liébana 200ml 1943
Pre-Arrival ETA Aug 2026

Pedro Ximénez from Montilla-Moriles, Anadlucía

Toro Albalá Don PX Ginés Liébana 200ml 1943

“The oldest, most concentrated, nuanced and serious from the range of single-harvest sweet wines I tasted this time was the 1943 Don PX Ginés Liébana, which comes from six butts that had been aging in the cellars without being blended. It has 15% alcohol and a whopping 440 grams of sugar, but the truth is, it doesn't come through as that sweet. It's super concentrated, layered and complex, thick and dense, like honey. This is the more serious and canonical, dare I say it, closer to the Jerez

Vintage 1943 200ml
$259
$249ea in any 3+
$239ea in any 6+
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La Colombera 'Il Montino' Derthona Timorasso 2023

Timorasso

La Colombera ‘Il Montino’ Derthona Timorasso 2023

Significant build in development and élévage over the classico. Looks to have spent time in a gentle oxidative state ie barrel. Flowing and long. A gentle and caressing feel. Fine. Balanced and more immediately comforting with lovely mid-palate weight. A creamy layer in the mid-palate suggests time on lees. Feels a little like a very good dry Vouvray Chenin. Pops of baking spice, ginger and poached pear mingle with gently ripe white stone fruit. An excellent Timorasso!Paul Kaan, Wine Decod

Vintage 2023
$112
$107ea in any 3+
$102ea in any 6+
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Gunderloch Nackenheim Rothenberg Riesling Spätlese 2019

Riesling from Rheinhessen, Germany

Gunderloch Nackenheim Rothenberg Riesling Spätlese 2019

A juicy wine for the category with plenty of cassis character, but that doesn’t mean it’s really full-bodied. In fact, at the finish it’s quite a light and austere wine with a lot of herbal and green-leaf tea flavors. Drink or hold.Stuart Piggot

Vintage 2019
$78
$74ea in any 3+
$70ea in any 6+
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