Likes this wine:

93 Points

Monday, September 25, 2023 - Found this a bit difficult to assess. I have less experience with Chablis of this caliber than other chardonnays, and have limited experience with (lightly) aged examples, too. It was a beautiful, fascinating wine, engaging and unique. I'm not sure if it truly "grabbed" me or became more than the sum of its parts. It definitely felt like a wine of place though, like it could have only come from a great vineyard in Chablis. I didn't decant, did a pop and pour despite the previous note (was shared last minute with friends, 20 mins out of the fridge)- maybe needed more air and patience.

The nose took some coaxing to open up, but not much- I got lots of little notes one at a time. Led with flint, then tidepool (along with the faint "funk" of seaweed or barnacles), white flowers, a bit of bright green apple, and even something like mushroom, a faint savory note that was sometimes fantastic and other times slightly off-putting. I got only a touch of oak or malo influence, little pops of vanilla that didn't stay around long. I don't know if I'd say the nose was super "harmonious", but it was definitely complex.

The palate was different, being a lot more "focused" and straightforward in a way - a huge, long wave of pure lemon/lime zest and saline minerality surging into the taste receptors and lingering extremely long in the finish. Despite the high acidity, it never felt "tart", just bright and vibrant. I might say it was lacking a bit of "depth" (felt like all soprano rather than a full choir.) Still, what an incredible length and focus.

I could be underrating this easily - I just don't have as much to compare it to as I'd like, and I could see it improving more, especially as the nose gets more and more expressive. For the price, I was slightly more impressed with the Kumeu River Maté Vineyard, which isn't a totally fair comparison. Really looking forward to trying more Fevre and other Chablis benchmarks.

Post a Comment / View sid_loves_wine's profile
2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Report Issue (999 views)
×
×