Chardonnay Wines

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The 2018 Chablis Montmains 1er Cru shows a little more definition and terroir expression compared directly with the Montée de Tonnerre. Lemon peel, touches of crushed stone and dried flowers almost reluctantly emerge with aeration. The palate is powerful and expressive, with a honeyed texture...Vinous Media | 92 VMThis is also quite cool with its restrained, airy and more elegant nose that features notes of mineral reduction, oyster shell and white flowers. The racy and beautifully well-delineated middle weight flavors deliver excellent persistence on the clean, notably dry and bracing finale where a hint of bitter lemon appears.Burghound | 90-92 BHThis has attractive peach and peach-kernel aromas with hints of flint and almond pastry. The palate has a very fleshy and succulent feel with apricot, mango and yellow-peach flavors. A steely-mineral spark below. Drink on release.James Suckling | 91-92 JS

Brocard used one-year old used barrels here, adding richness and complexity to this Valmur. The wood needs another 18-24 months to fully integrate. Sweet, ripe, plush fruit combine beautifully with bright acidity to finish. Very classy.Decanter | 94 DECPale lemon colour with a green tinge. Quite a firm strict nose though with some fruit weight behind. This once again has the fleshing out character, along with some coconut perhaps from the wood. Drink from 2026-2030.Jasper Morris | 91-94 JM

The 2020 Chablis Montmains 1er Cru is another precise, steely classic Chablis from Benoît Droin. The palate is beautifully balanced and poised, showing good concentration and wonderful cohesion and salinity toward the finish. I cannot wait to taste the final version.Vinous Media | 92-94 VMUnwinding in the glass with aromas of green apple, white flowers, mint and bee pollen, the 2020 Chablis 1er Cru Montmains is medium to full-bodied, satiny and incisive, with a textural attack and a long, saline finish. From a site characterized by white marls, it has performed well in this sunny vintage.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92 RPPale light colour with a juicy fruit nose, a wealth of joyous white fruit, very lightly peachy, not reductive this year. Benoît thinks will tighten up and refine its toastier character Jasper Morris | 90-92 JMn initial touch of reduction slowly gives way to very pretty and quite cool aromas timidly offer up notes of lemon-lime, white-fleshed fruit, sea breeze and a touch of algae character. There is good vibrancy and detail to the delicious and appealingly textured flavors that possess fine depth on the balanced finish that exhibits a touch of wood as it sits on the palate.Burghound | 91 BH

The deeper clays of this site tend to do well in warmer years, and the 2022 Chablis 1er Cru Butteaux is no exception, offering up aromas of dried white flowers, peach, citrus oil and freshly baked bread, followed by a medium to full-bodied, satiny and fleshy palate that retains good cut and tension in this warm vintage, concluding with a mouthwateringly saline finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93 RP

Offering up aromas of citrus oil, crisp stone fruit, white flowers and buttery pastry, Piuze’s 2022 Chablis Grand Cru Bougros is medium to full-bodied, ample and satiny, with a bright spine of acidity and a mouthwateringly saline finish. It’s an especially strong performance for this site this year.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93+ RP

A succulent, open-knit white marked by an alluring mix of peach fruit and stony mineral flavors, with yellow plum and citrus notes adding depth as this lingers on the finish. A fresh and focused, sunny version. Drink now through 2028. 50 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 92 WS

This is generally the richest, most fruit-driven grand cru bottling chez Fèvre, but the 2020 Chablis Grand Cru Bougros is a wine of particular distinction. Exhibiting aromas of peach, citrus blossom, bee pollen and oyster shell, it’s a medium to full-bodied, satiny and layered wine that’s ample but elegant, with racy acids and a long, saline finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94 RPThe 2020 Chablis Bougros Grand Cru comes from six hectares of vines, southwest- and south-facing, forming the two different cuvées. The bouquet unfolds to offer lovely yellow fruit and oyster leaf aromas, well defined and quite generous. The palate is taut and crisp with fine acidity and moderate depth, but very pretty and composed toward the saline finish. There is plenty of substance already in situ and I foresee this aging with class.Vinous Media | 92-94 VMThis is restrained to the point of being all but aromatically mute though aggressive swirling eventually coaxes notes of green fruit, citrus peel and oyster shell nuances to reveal themselves. There is both excellent volume and concentration to the big-bodied, powerful and imposing flavors that are focused, structured and youthfully austere. This is very much a work in progress, and I would advise allowing this at least 5 years of cellaring and it should easily reward a decade or more.Burghound | 92-94 BHThe 2020 Chablis “Bougros” from Domaine William Fèvre is a beautiful wine, and as is often the case in the lineup here, this is the most forward of the grand crus and the one I would reach to first if I had a desire to drink a delicious, younger grand cru. The bouquet is just loaded with beautifully pure fruit tones, with scents of pear, lime and green apple blending with notes of chalky soil tones, dried flowers and citrus peel. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, complex and long, with a gorgeous core of fruit, fine chalky undertow, bright, zesty acids and great focus and grip on the long, complex finish. This still deserves some bottle age, but it will not be a crime to let your curiosity get the best of you and open a bottle of this lovely wine four or five years down the road! (Drink between 2026 - 2065)John Gilman | 94 JGFrom 4ha of vineyards, this is an easy introduction to the Bougros Grand Cru. Acidity is well in check and the wine is generous, with 25% older wood used for maturation. Very nice weight and purity, minerality and an extra layer of richness compared to the premier cru. Higher yields here than Fèvre’s other grands crus, except Les Clos.Decanter | 93 DECA ripe, round style, featuring peach, apple and citrus flavors accented by grassy meadow and finger lime, with a stony note seeping in on the lingering finish. Best from 2024 through 2036.Wine Spectator | 91 WS

The 2022 Chablis Village has a crisp, focused bouquet with hints of pressed white flowers and wet stone. The elegant palate has flecks of white peach and apricot, balanced and lovely with a charming, precise finish. This is very capable and should age well in bottle.Vinous Media | 89-91 VM

The 2022 Chablis Valmur Grand Cru has a very aromatic bouquet with apple blossom, white peach, wet stone and light praline scents - complex. The palate is delineated and sapid on the entry, quite strict with quince and peach hints towards the sustained finish. Classy, if just missing the killer blow.Vinous Media | 91-93 VM

The 2022 Chablis Vaudésir Grand Cru is very fragrant on the nose with white peach, white chocolate and hints of wet stone scents, like a Vaillons-plus. The palate is well-defined, taut and fresh, with crisp acidity and good depth, but it starts to clam up towards the finish. Patience will be required, but there is no doubting the caliber of this Grand Cru.Vinous Media | 92-94 VM

The 2022 Chablis Mont de Milieu 1er Cru has a well-defined bouquet, and the 25% older oak utilized during its élevage is seamlessly integrated. The palate is taut and citrus from the off, quite saline, with grapefruit and melon hints surfacing towards the persistent finish. It coheres very nicely in the glass and has great potential. One of the best examples from this noble vineyard.Vinous Media | 92-94 VM

An elegant, pure and beautifully layered nose is comprised by notes of white orchard fruit, ocean breeze, quinine and a whiff of the exotic. There is really lovely intensity to the caressing but well-detailed middle weight flavors that conclude in a refreshing and inviting finish that evidences plenty of salinity. Beauroy is rarely this good so color me impressed.Burghound | 90-93 BHThe 2020 Chablis 1er Cru Beauroy is a charming, pretty wine, bursting with aromas of sweet white flowers, honeycomb, oyster shells and crisp stone fruit. Medium to full-bodied, ample and precise, with a satiny attack and a saline finish, it’s a particular success this year.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92 RPThere’s quite a bit of spice here although the palate is restrained and with good concentration. Less showy, a wine built for the long haul, this is classy and will age very well. From three parcels in Beauroy. No battonage, 25-30% in wood and 16-17 months maturation.Decanter | 92 DECThe 2020 Beauroy from Domaine Fèvre is a fine bottle in the making. This is a warmer microclimate and Didier noted that they picked this very early, “to keep the freshness in the wine.” The team has succeeded nicely in this, as the wine jumps from the glass in a lovely blend of lemon, pear, chalky soil tones, white flowers and a touch of upper register paraffin. On the palate the wine is bright, full-bodied and nicely balanced, with a good core, lovely transparency and grip and a long, zesty and complex finish. Good juice. (Drink between 2026 - 2055)John Gilman | 92 JGPale lime colour. Some spice on the nose, just kept the tension going on the palate, an easy access Chablis 1er cru, well made, but as always I think you get more by trading up.Jasper Morris | 89-91 JM

The one-hectare parcel that constitutes the 2021 Chablis Valmur Grand Cru yielded five barrels this year. This also has a heavy reduction and is quite yeasty at the moment. The palate is well balanced with a marine-influenced entry, flecks of white chocolate complementing the citrus fruit with a longer finish than the Blanchot. Fine sour lemon mixed with orange rind on the aftertaste. Excellent.Vinous Media | 92-94 VM

The 2020 Chablis 1er Cru Butteaux Vieilles Vignes will be bottled later than usual, as Michel was still waiting on the delivery of glass bottles when I visited—but extra time on the fine lees certainly won’t do it any harm. Exhibiting aromas of pear, white flowers, freshly baked bread, confit citrus and iodine, it’s medium to full-bodied, satiny and layered, with terrific depth and tension. It’s a close race between this and Michel’s Vaulorent this year.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93+ RPBack in the fleshier style so for once I may have a preference for the regular. But then I love it on the palate with just a little bit of fresh red fruit mixing in. This has been racked a second time and sulphured which may explain the nose. The finish is excellent and very well poised.Jasper Morris | 92-94 JM

The 2020 Chablis Blanchot Grand Cru is aged 75% in stainless steel and 25% in oak for nine months, followed by five months all in stainless steel. It has a relatively light bouquet, quite airy in style, gaining intensity with aeration, touches of white peach, smoke and granite. The palate is well balanced with a fine line of acidity, citrus fruit, orange rind and a touch of stem ginger towards the finish that fans out nicely. This meliorates with aeration and is worth decanting if you decide to crack open a bottle in its youth. Tasted blind at the BIVB tasting in Chablis.Vinous Media | 93 VMA deftly balanced white highlighted by apple, yellow plum, floral and stone aromas and flavors. Offers a rich and supple texture, making this almost seamless from start to the finish, where a stony element emerges. Drink now through 2028. 304 cases made, 150 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 92 WSModerate wood surrounds the overtly floral-suffused nose of softly exotic white peach, sea breeze and pretty spice whiffs. The succulent, round and plump flavors exude a refreshing salinity on the very dry and sneaky long finish. Like several wines in the range, this needs to develop more depth, but the underlying material appears to be present for that to occur.Burghound | 92 BH

A mellow white, with a light touch of vanilla and clove accenting peach, apple tart and honey flavors. Well-delineated and balanced, with honey, spice and mineral accents on the finish. Best from 2024 through 2030. 131 cases made, 70 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 93 WSThe 2020 Chablis Les Preuses Grand Cru delivers the intensity one seeks in this cru, offering scent of chalk dust, lemon thyme and light loamy aromas. It builds nicely in the glass. The palate is well-balanced with a fine thread of acidity, compact on the entry yet it fans out nicely whilst retaining admirable tension from start to finish. I would have just liked a little more residual spiciness, but this will do nicely. Tasted blind at the BIVB tasting in Chablis.Vinous Media | 93 VMDiscreet though certainly perceptible wood sets off the ripe aromas of citrus confit, spring flowers, iodine and shellfish. The mouthfeel of the medium weight plus flavors is nothing short of gorgeous as it’s at once caressing but punchy on the sappy and strikingly long finish. This too would benefit from having better depth, but the density of material is such that more will almost certainly develop if allowed a few years first.Burghound | 93 BH

The 2021 Chablis Les Clos Grand Cru was taken from tank rather than barrel. This was primal on the nose and difficult to read. The palate is more expressive: finely tuned with a fine bead of acidity, tensile and saline, it does not possess the complexity of Raveneau’s Les Clos tasted an hour or two before, but it has great penetration and a compelling flinty finish. Excellent.Vinous Media | 93-95 VMHere too the nose is presently dominated by reduction and wood toast. More interesting are the sleek, intense and ultra-fresh middleweight plus flavors that possess excellent size, richness and power where the latter suffuses the sappy, muscular and saliva-inducing, moderately dry and compact finale. This very promising effort is going to need at least a decade to realize its full potential. Impressive.Burghound | 92-95 BH

Droin owns 10ha of AP Chablis. Much more interest here with a deeper hue in the glass and much more interest on the nose. Some greengage on the palate, together with a hint of pear and white peach. Pretty much a benchmark example of what village Chablis should be. Concentration and a lengthy mineral character to finish.Decanter | 92 DECThis is aromatically similar to the Petit Chablis though with more citrus elements in evidence. There is again good richness to the succulent and rounded medium-weight flavors that also exude a refreshing salinity on the clean, moderately dry and sneaky long finish that is slightly firmer.Burghound | 88-91 BHThe 2021 Chablis Village has a fresh nose with Granny Smith apples and a touch of fresh pear. With good balance and acidity, the palate is quite saline in the mouth with veins of orchard fruit, hints of wild peach and citrus peel, delicate and refined on the finish.Vinous Media | 88-90 VM

Droin’s Montmains site is on a gentle slope with richer, deeper, kimmeridgian marl soils. A colder site, making the wine richer and with great density on the palate. Distinctly more weight than the Vaillons, giving the blend plenty of gravitas. 8-10 months ageing on fine lees adds a creamy character with acidity less pronounced than with the Vaillons. Classy.Decanter | 92 DECAn even more floral-suffused nose speaks of the pretty essence of pear and apple while offering better overall typicity. The palate impression of the middleweight flavors is also plump, round and fleshy with its reasonably persistent, dry and balanced finale that also could use better depth. This attractive effort should be approachable young yet also reward 4 to 7 years of keeping.Burghound | 89-92 BHThe 2021 Chablis Montmains 1er Cru has a classic Chablis-like bouquet with scents of shucked oyster shell and light fumé notes emerging from the glass. The palate is well balanced with a saline, lemon rind infused entry, moderate weight, perhaps not quite as precise as the Vaillons yet with satisfying persistence. Fine.Vinous Media | 89-91 VM

Droin’s Fourchaume is located in the Vaupulent sector, on deep, clay-rich soils. A warmer site, this is a;ready very appealing with nice touches of baked apples and stone-fruit on the palate, with softer acidity and concentration. Although accessible early, this has the concentration to age extremely well and will deliver more saline aspects with more bottle age.Decanter | 92 DECA whiff of mineral reduction is present on the nose of pear and apple compote where there is just enough Chablis typicity to be convincing. The succulent, round and palate coating flavors possess good underlying tension while delivering solid depth and length on the delicious finish where the only nit is a hint of warmth.Burghound | 90-92 BHThe 2021 Chablis Fourchaume 1er Cru shows a little more reduction on the nose compared to other cuvées but a pleasant flintiness develops with time. The palate is well balanced with a cohesive entry, fine weight although it doesn’t quite deliver the same precision as the Mont de Milieu at the moment. Fine.Vinous Media | 89-91 VM

Droin have a sizeable 4.8ha of Vaillons, with five plots in Epinottes, Roncieres, Sechet, Chatains and Beugnons. This is always a super reliable blend as Benoit is able to draw on plots which work well in hot and cold vintages. A very fine premier cru with pronounced notes of white flowers, crisp acidity, some generous zesty citrus and a hint of stone fruit. Long and classy.Decanter | 93 DECThe 2021 Chablis Vaillons 1er Cru has a backward nose that needs more coaxing in the glass. The palate is well balanced with a fine bead of acidity, quite steely, lemon peel and touches of orange pith with quite a persistent finish. Fine.Vinous Media | 90-92 VMA lightly peppery, airy and cool nose freely offers up floral, white fruit and citrus nuances that exhibit just enough Chablis typicity to confirm where this is from. The plump, round and fleshy flavors possess a hint of natural sweetness that contrasts markedly with clean and bone-dry finish that offers good length but not quite the same complexity.Burghound | 89-92 BH

The 2021 Chablis Vaillons 1er Cru, which comes from around 12 parcels, 3.5-hectares, two-thirds within the "Vaillons" climats in the heart of the appellation. This has a slightly yeasty nose at the moment, not a million miles away from the Montmains in style. The palate is slightly different with a little more frisson and tension, just a touch more length on the finish. This should develop nicely in bottle.Vinous Media | 91-93 VMDidier Seguier says that this is from a sunny terroir but in a cold vintage. It is certainly very attractive with the acidity balancing, and complimenting, the generosity of the fruit. White flowers and a touch of pear/white peach on the palate. Very precise and nice mineral undertow. A really fine example, mostly from the Vaillon sector within the wider Vaillon Premier Cru. Drinking Window: 2023 - 2028Decanter | 93 DEC

Subtly smoky and thrilling in minerality, this pure-fruited, lemon-scented Chablis highlights white peach and lime flavors etched by limestone and chalk. Despite a hot vintage, it’s a classic, cooling expression of Mont de Milieu vinified entirely in stainless steel. It’s at peak from 2023 to 2035 but the wine should hold longer still.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEThe 2019 Chablis Mont de Milieu 1er Cru has a clean, Alpine-scented bouquet that displays fine mineralité and tension. In the mouth, it’s fresh, vibrant and quite spicy on the midpalate, leading into an engaging, intense finish. This is a superb Mont de Milieu that should age with style. A Chablis with pedigree.Vinous Media | 93 VMMore depth and resolve on the nose here, with a deeper hue in the glass and some intriguing spice and woody notes on the palate. Good concentration with some refreshing citric acidity to finish. This shows the combination of ripeness and stony minerality which makes Mont de Milieu one of the leading Premier Crus. Drinking Window: 2021 - 2027Decanter | 92 DEC

The 2021 Chablis Les Clos Grand Cru comes from 2.5-hectares from parcels located from the bottom to the top of the slope, 20% fermented in new oak and aged entirely in wood. It has quite a powerful bouquet; although, I think it would have been a little more sharp with some proportion raised in stainless steel. The palate is well balanced with good weight, a subtle nuttiness on the entry, notes of orange rind and citrus peel; the 2021 is quite linear on the finish and lingers nicely in the mouth. I think this will gain complexity by the time it is bottled next year.Vinous Media | 91-93 VM

With close to 6.5 acres in this grand cru, Arnaud Lavantureux treats most of this wine to barrel fermentation, then aging in used oak barrels; a small portion rests in new oak. The barrel time has amped up the wine’s power, its viscosity and smoky scents. But it never goes dark, sustaining a stark contrast of white on white. Complex, feather-light in the end, it keeps coming after you with detail, the way wildflower honey might, only this is completely dry.Wine & Spirits Magazine | 94 W&S