2008 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos
Wine served blind to friends at a lunch, with the balance finished the next evening with dinner.
Pale gold. Lovely pure nose, like a snow fed mountain stream. Lightly and prettily perfumed with aromas of lemon zest, acacia blossom, touches of honeycomb, rock melon, green apple and white pear. Mineral elements too: steel, wet granite and some blackboard chalk. Blind, bouquet confusable with White Burgundy (Puligny-Montrachet?), just the hint of salinity gives it away. Sweet entry on palate, silky texture. Bright, racy acids, with real intensity. This is excellent Chablis, with real fruit weight, Grand Cru depth, power (at only 12.5% alc) and structure, and a strong acid backbone, but precise and focused and beautifully balanced. Flavours of lemon, lime, minerals and almonds. There is oak here but it is well integrated. Long, with a dry finish. Better on the second day. Lovely now, but will improve over many years (if it survives premox).
The 2008 Fevre Valmur I had a couple of months ago was good, but this is a class above, 94.
Agree Howard, this was a great wine. I thought there was an element of fern and greengauge on bouquet. More structured and expressive than the Valmur which was delicious but this was superb.What will you bring tomorrow night?!
Hi Thierry, a couple of Chablis, but not Fevre!
Cheers, Howard
Had this wine once and loved it. Sleeping on the next bottles. Should I go ahead?
Antoine, hard question to answer. Drinking beautifully now but should improve as it ages. The oxidised burgs site does not yet indicate premox emerging in 2008 Fevre (http://oxidised-burgs.wikispaces.com/Fevre) but it could still emerge (and Fevre like the 2002 and 2006 Les Clos have been quite affected). As you have more than one bottle, you could do what I did and try one now, holding the rest.
If you do pull the pin, I’d be interested to read a TN.
Cheers, Howard
Thanks for the note, Howard. Had a 2008 Raveneau Montee de Tonnerre last week that was tight, tight tight. Almost nothing on the nose and palate on opening. Did start to blossom after an hour or two of air, but I wouldn’t open another for a few years. Your note sounds like the Fevre may be a little more approachable. Will have to open one or two over the holidays.
Interesting, Tim. I took the Fevre to a Christmas lunch at Mike D and Cathy’s place on Sunday. Someone (Mike?) had brought the 2008 Raveneau Montee de Tonnerre, so I was able to taste the two virtually side-by-side.
The Fevre was certainly more open textured than the Raveneau, and had more aromatics (while still having plenty of stuffing for the future). However the Raveneau was not unapproachable or shut down, I remember it as a quite restrained, classic, structured and classy MoT, that went very well with Mike’s excellent smoked trout. I don’t know how long it had been opened before tasting though. From memory, it was however less open or aromatic than the 2009 Raveneau MoT I had a couple of weeks ago (TNs: 2009 White Burgundies - WINE TALK - WineBerserkers).
Ultimately, it probably just reflects the two different house styles …
Mike or Thierry might have other comments on the comparison.
I’d be interested to read your impressions of the 2008 Fevre. The more 2008 Chablis I try the more impressed I am with the vintage …
Best, Howard
I agree with your assessment about the Raveneau next to Fèvre. The Raveneau, to me, had more iodine and saline character. Quite taut and structured but I thought it was not completely shut down.