2004 Daniel-Etienne Defaix Chablis 1er Cru Les Lys- France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru (10/10/2018)
Ex-cellar…2yr elevage in stainless steal, aged in cool cellar and only released when deemed ready…a Kalin Cellars of Chablis! This is a current release! Dark golden color…ripe and sweet pitted(botrytis?) fruit, golden raisin, crushed oyster shell, iodine, chalk nose. Really rich and oily fruit…almost seems to have some botrytis, yet not too sweet or cloying as there is plenty of crushed oyster shell and chalky limestone, as well as a fresh squeeze of lemon and grapefruit acidity that kicks up the energy. Love the oily and waxy feel of the wine…then you get that tangy sharp lift of acidity on the finish…and complexities that scream Chablis with the marine funk, crushed shells, slight flint strike. The age has brought no ox at all…maybe darkened the fruit, and shows some honey and brown butter sauté…but fresh fresh fresh! LOVE these ex-cellar wines! (94 pts.)
Great note, thanks! I’ve seen some of these wines online and thought that they were just some random old stuff the shop couldn’t move. The pricing is so low that you would never guess them to be late-releases??
I’m a fan of this producer, too! The late release system means they get missed out of a lot of journalists “vintage reports”, as they are over a decade behind everyone else, and I think that explains why they fly a bit under the radar.
This came out in our market last fall and I bought a few based on this note, and William Kelleys. Just a beautiful wine. Couldn’t agree more with your note. Agreed that these are attractively priced given they’re late releases. A producer that doesn’t get much credibility on here, but is clearly very good.
It’s worth noting that friends who have gone through a few of these have noted higher than usual rates of cork taint and oxidation. Not a big deal here as our government run monopoly will refund any flawed bottle.
The 2005 Côte de Lechet from the same producer just came out two weeks ago here. I’ve ordered some, but not yet received. Didn’t see a note for that specific wine on here, but in my reading the producer considers it their top cuvee (they have no Grand Crus).
William Kelley seems to have had some good coverage of the back vintages of this producer. I’d be curious to get his overall impression.
Well, as with the Kalin Cellars wines that Buzz cites, late releases certainly are more fragile in shipping—which is a delicate matter even for young wines… But I have never heard of systematic issues and all the bottles I have opened in the US have been good. Would be interesting to hear more peoples’ experiences.
Élevage is in steel, with the lees reintroduced into suspension periodically, and protracted, for as many as three years. That really builds texture into the wines beyond what one typically encounters in rapid rotation Chablis, which is enzymatically clarified and filtered to get it into bottle and to market as soon as possible. (Many producers had done a first bottling of 2018 Chablis by Spring 2019). Long élevage like this seems to turn out good results in warmer vintages such as 2003 and 2005.
I have a 1989 in my cellar, I should open it some time.
I loved the 2004 Les Lys but had a hard time recently with a 2014 Village. Any idea what it was? Seemed different than most other Chablis period, especially that vintage. Maybe something to do with texture? I’ve pretty much loved every 14 Chablis but Defaix fave me a hard time…
Just opened one of these and it was so great that I went back and bought some of the '05. Might be my WOTY so far. Just beautiful and paired great with lobster.
2004 Daniel-Etienne Defaix Chablis 1er Cru Les Lys- France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru (8/7/2021)
3 for 3 with these…another crazy good bottle…even more glimmering yellow gold freshness in this bottle! Not as oily rich as first noted…citrus and crushed oyster shell screams louder…wonderful freshness, integrated with aged nuances of white mushroom and honey notes…buttery sautéed apples, flint strike lees…salty sea air, with a little funk…what a FANTASTIC 17yr old Chablis should taste like!!! Impressive that all three bottles have outdone each one in succession. (95 pts.)
