Chablis with Vitis Bergensis

Hotel Terminus, Bergen, Norway
Tasted Sunday, May 13, 2007 by abbulf with 805 views

Introduction

This was a tasting of mostly premier cru Chablis from 2000 and the years just before and after. Interestingly nearly all the wines were too young and had not yet reached their peak of maturty. If they avoid the pox most of these will provide even more pleasure in the years to come.

Flight 1 - Tribut Côte de Léchet 1999-2001 (3 Notes)

These wines were all very nice, and were some of the more mature wines of the tasting. Only the Dauvissats were on the same level of naturity.

Flight 2 - Montée de Tonnerre 2000 (3 Notes)

These three were all clearly less mature than the Tributs. The Duplessis stood out in quality here.

Flight 3 - Fourchaume 1999 and 2000 (4 Notes)

Flight 2 and 3 was interesting in the way that I could compare Fourchaume to Montée de Tonnerre, Duplessis and Fevre to each other and 1999 to 2000. The 2000 Duplessis Fourchaume was clearly more similar to the 2000 MdT than to the 1999 Fourchaume, and also I learned that I prefer 2000 Duplessis to Fevre by a mile.

  • 1999 Caves Duplessis Chablis 1er Cru Fourchaume

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru

    Almost green colour. Less consentrated than the 2000 Montee de Tonnerre on the nose. Some honey and nuts. Also some barnyard, but less than the MdT. Also thinner on the palate, but long and spicy. Good wine but a bit pale due to the vintage.

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  • 2000 Caves Duplessis Chablis 1er Cru Fourchaume

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru

    The nose is closer to the 2000 MdT than to the 1999 Fourchaume. This has more intensity than the 99. Also there is lots of barnyard and minerals. On the palate it is more consentrated than the 99 and has more pure power. Still it is quite tight. Long and spicy aftertaste. Clearly a wine that will benefit from further cellaring.Delicious and clearly the wine of the flight.

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  • 2000 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis 1er Cru Fourchaume

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru

    This is not really my thing. Oak, caramel, toast and butter on the nose. Also something like aceton. Improves a bit with air, but this is not what chablis is supposed to smell like in my opinion. On the palate it has less consentration and power than the Duplessis bottles. Neither is it very long. Clearly the weakest of the flight.

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  • 2000 La Chablisienne Chablis 1er Cru L'Homme Mort

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru

    Oak on the nose on this one as well. Also some flowers. Crisp, but at the same time there is a sting that is not entirely pleasant. Clearly better than the Fevre Fourchaume, and also better than the last time I had this wine. On the palate it is quite consentrated and rich, but it lacks the length and intensity that Duplessis has in the aftertaste on his wines. Still it is quite ok.

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Flight 4 - Fourchaume 2002 (3 Notes)

All these three wines were very consentrated and intense, and with good balance and acidity.

  • 2002 La Chablisienne Chablis 1er Cru Fourchaume

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru

    The nose is resembeling the Michel Fourchaume. Lots of minerals, barnyard, some seashells. Very fine nose. Both this and the Michel are too young at this point. The palate is young, but very fine. Consentrated, some fatness. There are also some apples. Wine of the flight and one of the best of the night so far. It is more accessible than the Duplessis wines at this moment, but still it is clearly a wine for further cellaring.

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  • 2002 Domaine Louis Michel Chablis 1er Cru Fourchaume

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru

    Earthy nose with barnyard and minerals much like the wines of Duplessis. More complexity and more developed than the Billaud-Simon Faurchaume. A bit sweeter than the Chablisienne, but still it is very nice. Also some rubber. On the palate it is slimmer than the Chablisienne, but it is long and spicy. Tight and very good wine, but still too young.

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  • 2002 Domaine Billaud-Simon Chablis 1er Cru Fourchaume

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru

    Initially the nose is quite closed. Clearly more perfumed than the two former wines, and also a bit thin on the nose in comparison. A bit sweet. Too young. On the palate it is also a bit pale. In this flight it is not doing that great, but maybe it will improve with more cellar time. With air it improves and after a while it starts to show much of the same power and intensity as the two other wines of the flight. All three wines are well balanced and with good acid.

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Flight 5 - Pre 2000 Dauvissat and Duplessis (3 Notes)

This was probably the best flight of the night, with the Dauvissat 96 claerly wine of the night.

  • 1996 Vincent Dauvissat (René & Vincent) Chablis 1er Cru La Forest

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru

    Deliciously complex nose of seashells, butter, honey and nuts. Rich and very very good. Some sweetness. To compare with the only other high-quality 1996 chablis I've had, Louis Michels Vaudesir, this one is more towards honey and nuts while the Michel was more about seashells, oysters and crabs. The palate is also utterly delicious. Great balance and enormous amounts of acid, but at the same time also some sweetness. Very long aftetaste, but not quite as spicy as the Duplessis bottles. Fantastic wine.

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  • 1997 Vincent Dauvissat (René & Vincent) Chablis 1er Cru La Forest

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru

    Seashells and nuts on the nose. A bit thinner than the 96. Something sweet. More nuts and honey and less seashells here. The nose is also clearly warmer here with some toast aromas. On the palate it is not as consentrated as the 96. Neither is it as acidic. This is also very good, but in a warmer style than the 96 and not quite as good.

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  • 1998 Caves Duplessis Chablis 1er Cru Montmains

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru

    Initially lots of sulfur on the nose. After a while this blows off and it shows more barnyard aromas. Resembling the other Duplessis wines tonight, but this one is a bit more complex. On the palate it is very nice. Younger than both the Dauvissats. It is Mineral and with lots of spice in the aftertaste. A very fine wine.

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Flight 6 - Raveneau Butteaux 2001 and 2003 (2 Notes)

Raveneau in two off wintages, but he still shows lots of class. Two really fine efforts in difficult vintages.

  • 2001 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Butteaux

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru

    Tight and young on the nose. Earthy barnyard notes. Consentrated and with botrytis. More complex than the 2003. On the palate it is not extremely consentrated, but it is very long. Great acid and very spiced up aftertaste. Great balance and a very fine wine.

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  • 2003 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Butteaux

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru

    Less consentrated and different on the nose than the 2001. A bit warmer and with some toasty notes. On the palate it almost feels like it lacks a bit of power and aggression. Slim and very balanced, but not very consentrated and with less acid than the 01. Still great for the 2003 vintage.

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Flight 7 - Vaudesir 2000 and 2002 (3 Notes)

This flight was almost a bit disappointing in the way that after all the great premier crus something even more was expected here, but that did not happen. The Michel was great, but the two others were not better than lots of the other wines tasted tonight. On the other hand lots of the premier crus tasted clearly are of grand cru quality.

  • 2000 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Vaudésir

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru

    Toast and honey on the nose. Lots of oak here. Intense and in a bit too warm style for my liking. Also strong hints of rye bread on the nose. On the palate the warmness continues. An atypical 2000. Still there is is fine acid and decent length. Not my cup of tea.

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  • 2000 Domaine Louis Michel Chablis Grand Cru Vaudésir

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru

    Right away the glass smells of sweat, but that blows off after a few minutes. Then it reveals a wine that is purer than the similar Fevre wine, the absence of oak is noticeable. On the palate it is extremely acidic and the aftertaste is long. Already really good and will probably be great with more age.

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  • 2002 Gérard Tremblay Chablis Grand Cru Vaudésir

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru

    Floral, fruity and a bit thin on the nose. Delicate. Very similar to my last taste of this. On the palate it is richer than the 2000 grand crus tasted tonight, but not quite with the same level of acidity. Very fine wine that needs more time.

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Closing

All in all a great tasting. No oxidation problems to speak of and a good argument to why quality chablis require cellaring.

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