Guillaume Gicueau-Michel, the family’s sixth generation at the winery, dropped by today with some of the 2008s of Domaine Louis Michel. No oak has been used here since 1969 and, starting with the 2008 vintage, fermentation is done entirely by wild yeast followed by naturally occurring malo. No skin contact for these wines which are from mostly fresh-run juice. Matured on their fine lees only.
2008 Chablis
Stelvin closure. Very bright and crisp with supple fruit.
2008 Chablis Montmains
Stelvin Closure. Fuller nose with a creamy body backed by expressive crisp yellow fruit.
2008 Chablis Forets
(part of Montmains) A hint of charcoal hides behind refreshing citrus fruit and blossom aromas. Quite forward and vivacious.
2008 Chablis Vaillons
Riper and fuller that the previous wines, this has density to its character. Flowery, yet firm.
2008 Chablis Montee de Tonnerre
Meow! Wet stone with pulverized citrus, salt, and spice. Perfect balance between acid and fruit with minerality forming the keystone. Freakin’ delicious!
2008 Chablis Vaudesir
Bottled 3 weeks ago. Backwards and reticent both in body and aroma. Very dense profile hiding underneath. Relatively creamy expression of Chablis with some roasted corn eventually coming out.
2008 Chablis Grenouilles
Bottled 3 weeks ago. Smallest Chablis Grand Cru. Also backwards, but smelled of iodine, crushed raw corn, citrus, and mineral. More round than Vaudesir and “tastes” better today.
Nice Peter.
Guillaume is a very engaging guy.
The Montee de Tonnerre sounds like my kind of Chablis.
Thanks for the notes.
and they’re reasonably priced! Will need to check the wiki to see if there’s been much premox. I know the Vaudesir is one of Jim Cowan’s favorites. I’ve enjoyed the Grenouilles, but I like saying that word, too (Gren-new-yeey).
alan
Thanks for the notes Peter. Can you sum up the vintage for Louis Michel for us, especially in comparison to other recent years?
I’m biased. I really like their wines. In 2008 I found an incredibly “saucy” quality to the wines, across the board. You know, a little more swing in the hip while they saunter across the palate. I can’t guarantee it, but I feel strongly that the use of the vineyards’ wild yeast in fermentation has allowed the wines to be slightly more expressive in this, their infancy.
Some people will prefer the 2007s because of the swanky quality of the 2008. I said swanky, not slutty.
Let’s go with very short memories of previous vintages.
2007: vibrant, yet full-bodied wines. Perhaps not as “salty” as I prefer in the upper echelon of 1er Cru and GC, but very luscious and hard not to love.
2006: baby fat and cream elements running from basic Chablis through the GCs. Big fan of Grenouilles when it first arrived.
2005: I only remember these wines being quite spicy in their youth. Haven’t had one recently.
2004: Nice wines, very forward, but lean
2003: nope, did not enjoy many 03s, from anyone
2002: I can’t remember the youthful tasting and way too lazy to search for notes. However, I did have a Clos this past fall that was NOT pre-mox’d and WAS delicious! Tons of rock salt, lemon curd, and the beginnings of aged austerity showing up.
grabbed some 06 Frogs just a couple days ago ($63/b) . . .
alan
