Tasted in Chablis with Lyne Marchive and Guénolé Breteaudeau, 29 january 2016.
Domaine des Malandes
11 route d’Auxerre
89800 Chablis
Tel. +33 3 86 42 41 37
www.domainedesmalandes.com
Lyne Marchive is from an old Chablis family, the Tremblays. She has run her own domaine since 1972, but founded Domaine des Malandes with her husband in 1986 – today it covers 29 hecatres of vines and produces around 200,000 bottles. A little over 90% of production is exported, and as Lyne notes, the market is very good for Chablis.
Lyne on 2015:
“We started a week earlier than intended due to the overnight hail – here essentially it affected Les Clos and Montmains. Fortunately it was the start of the maturity so we were able to begin picking on the 2nd – lucky as they wouldn’t have been ripe one week earlier. Luckily the grapes were clean and anyway the acidity wasn’t so marked so it worked out well. We actually benefited from the rain of the storm as the maturity had been a little blocked. A vintage not unlike 2003 but a style more like 2009.”
Lyne on 2014:
“A little later harvesting. The poor flowering was one of the key points – it was really super hot and although the flowering looked good, many quickly fell to the ground. Coulure followed. Bienes was a little better as it is cooler and just a little later to flower – it was more of an issue in Chablis. Really it was the end of the season that was close to perfect – mid-summer was not. The wines have a fine acidity, very typical Chablis with very clean grapes, we always harvest just a little earlier than the average. This was the first vintage vinified in the new cuverie.”
The wines…
The first two wines are already sold out, the market is running very well!
Had a lot of problems with corked wines et-cetera, so now used nomacorc, procorc, diam, et-cetera.
All stainless steel elevage. One parcel is rather old vines for PC, planted by Lyne’s father – about 40 years old.
A wide, faintly herbed but very silky. Moves beautifully across the palate, with a modest richness and no modesty to the silky texture. Wide, bright, really delicious wine for the label – really good finishing.
2014 Chablis
Parcels from many villages – the largest cuvée of the domaine. 100% tank elevage. Of-course with this size of cuvée a number of bottlings, this from November – the last.
More depth of pure fruit, there’s a certain fresh ripeness and perfume too. Wide, almost lush, super texture, faintly salt encrusted, with a super burst of mid-palate to finishing flavour. Excellent!
An old vines selection close to Vaudesir but due to orientation classed as villages. 25% in barrel before re-assembling.
A subtle, indeed quite tight nose today. More dimension of flavour; lithe, energetic, a certain sucrosity and fine intensity – adding up to real deliciousness – bravo!
2014 Chablis 1er Côte de Léchet
Hand harvested as there are are lots of millerandes and anyway a small parcel – with vines about 40 years old. 100% stainless steel.
Also a little tight, but here with a width of of aroma that’s more mineral. A wide and mineral palate, faintly agrumed fruit. Really nice growth of fresh and intense flavour that lingers with clarity and fine taste.
2014 Chablis 1er Vau de Vey
Very steep vineyard near Beines – it doesn’t have the sun the whole day so is harvested a little later. 30% barrel elevage here – a mix of hand and machine harvesting.
Not so wide but a fine depth of mineral aroma – slowly adds a little floral dimension too. Fills the mouth, complex, fresh, enveloping, agrume flavours with a hint of salt. Really a fine and persistent line in the finish. Super…
Old vines – approaching 65 years old. 30% barrel.
A nice vibration to this modestly but unashamedly mineral nose. Really impressively mouth-watering. A certain softness but really a delicious wine with high toned, bright pure citrus notes – super.
From the heart of the historic Fourchaume, parcels from father and grandfather – also about 65 years-old. Lots of millerandes so hand harvested – again about 30% new wood.
A very subtle, but very pretty nose – suggesting flowers more than fruit or minerals. Ouf – wide, mineral, silky, slowly growing extra dimensions of flavour – starts neutral and becomes ever-more tasty. Delicious, complex and engaging wine – super tasty and persistent finishing – bravo!
2014 Chablis 1er Mont de Milieu
A small parcel since 2011, swapped some Vaudesir for this – but not the ownership! They simply work each other’s parcels! All by hand and with 50% barrel elevage.
Really a very fine and pure nose, just a suggestion of warmth (ripeness) to fruit. Wide, complex, enveloping – really lovely. No histrionics, no shouting, just complex engaging wine – super. The salinity of it’s origin coming through in the finish. Long and excellent.
2014 Chablis Vaudesir
Hand harvested from the ‘coté lunaire, not solaire’, needs harvesting 3 or 4 days later. 100% in barrel for 10 months followed by ss for a total of 13-14 months of elevage.
The first wine with a background of sweet oak spice, not over the top but present. Large in the mouth, complex, support from sweet oak. Very nice complexity, suggesting a little opulence in the mid-palate – very lovely. Here is a super-tasty wine and with excellent length. But wait for that oak to fade a little – maybe 3-4 years, you will be rewarded.
2014 Chablis Les Clos
All by hand and with the same elevage as the Vaudesir.
A similar background of oak-spice but on a lower level here – to the font of house is an attractive, sleek, mineral and agrume type of character. Round, faintly soft but hyper-complex with a growing freshness – the oak shows just a little in the finish, but a much lower level. The finish is modest in intensity but very impressive in persistence. Very fine wine – which you could easily drink today, but rather I would wait for the oak to fade – again 3+ years. Very fine.