More online fun
"CHABLIS IS A GEM, KNOWN TO MANY BUT IGNORED BY MANY MORE" - JASPER MORRIS MW - Zoom! (5/2/2020)
- 2015 Château de Beru Chablis 1er Cru Vaucoupin - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru
Very steep vineyard with crystalline white soil; on the right bank of the Serein but with left bank characteristics. Very long maturation in a variety of media (casks, eggs, terracotta etc) and made 'naturally'. Weighty and savoury on the nose, with white flowers. Broad attack, fresh limey finish, with a green apple aftermath - lovely balance. Hints of smoke. Precise but in no way thin. Really very nice as an aperitif, and my WOTN. (92 pts.)
- 2015 Dauvissat-Camus Chablis 1er Cru Vaillons - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru
Lots of green apple on the nose, a bit tight/discrete. More salinity than the first wine tonight. Some old yellow apple flavour, with soft acidity - not quite flabby, but in that direction. Almost reminiscent of Savagnin. Best attribute is its length - really persistent and a nice chewiness. (89 pts.)
- 2017 Moreau-Naudet & Fils Chablis 1er Cru Montmains - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru
Matured in a mix of tank and barrel. Some faint apple on the nose, which makes little impression, but loads of energy and flavour on the palate - delicious. Smoky pineapple, good acidity and a nice lactic note on the mid-palate. Gorgeous finish. My #2 on the night. (91 pts.)
- 2016 Domaine Louis Michel Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru
Entirely matured in steel. Super clean nose, hint of tropical fruit, cut grass - Mosel Riesling-esque. Big wine in the mouth - almost tannic there's so much substance to it. Quite bitter on the finish and maybe a touch short. More of a roast chicken than an oyster kind of Chablis. (90 pts.)
- 2015 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Butteaux - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru
Vineyard on the left bank, but typically has even more weight than Montee de Tonnerre as the valley traps the heat. Elegant, lemony and herbal on the nose. A touch soft but Raveneau managed the vintage well and this comes across as attractively creamy. A bit closed at this stage, more to come (and indeed the wine improved quite a bit with air). (91 pts.)
- 2015 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis 1er Cru Vaulorent - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru
A touch of oak evident on the nose and palate here, but it's in balance. A nice citrus energy to the wine, vanilla on the finish. Good length, lots of fun already but more to come. (91 pts.)
Followed by
NV Emilio Hidalgo Amontillado Especial Viejo "El Tresillo 1874" - Spain, Andalucía, Jerez-Xérès-Sherry (5/2/2020)
We managed to get takeaway from one of our favourite local tapas restaurants, so logical to open our only (!) bottle of Sherry. Turbo levels of rancio here - wood polish on the nose, cigar box, loads of nutty, fishy flavour on the palate, good acidity and the incredibly long finish. Great wine but docked a point or two because I find a dissonnance between the intensity of the flavour and the high alcohol on the one hand, and the perceived lightness of body and bone dryness on the other, which makes it a tricky food match - it's not fresh and saline enough for fish, nor rich enough for meat.
(93 pts.)
Followed by another bottle of
Charles Heidsieck NV (2012 base) - as good as the last ones.
A couple of things to highlight with the Chablis - real divergence on the WOTN voting on the Zoom chat, and I note that Mike H (also in attendance) and I only agreed on about half of the wines; and it's funny that my two favourites were from the two producers I'd never heard of!