Region: Chablis Grapes: Chardonnay First Glance: Layered, Rich, Sea-spray, Racy
The Wine: The 2021 Chablis was picked over various dates, depending on the ripeness of the plot. The fruit was subject to a very gentle four-hour press, and the juice was fermented with natural yeasts (still a rarity in Chablis). It was primarily matured in a tank, yet the aging is unhurried, and the wine spends 20 months on lees—considerably longer than most Chablis of this level. These traditional methods—along with hand-harvesting, the quality of the terroir, the low yields and the ripeness levels at which the fruit is harvested—help explain the mouthcoating texture, salty depths and, in general, the quality on offer.
Expect lifted aromas of mixed citrus, wet stone and tangy sherbet, leading to a multi-layered, textural palate. Real flesh and roll on the tongue are backed up by plenty of salivating sea spray and iodine sappiness. Plenty of complexity, too, perhaps not surprising given this grower’s credentials, but the bigger picture is all about texture and tangy freshness. Look out for waves of racy stony fruit and briny depths tapering to a finish built on crunchy tension.
