Nathalie & Gilles Fèvre – 2014

8.2.2016billn

DSC09107Tasted in Fontenay-près-Chablis with Nathalie and Gilles Fèvre, 06 January 2016.

Domaine Nathalie et Gilles Fèvre
Route de Chablis
89800 Fontenay-près-Chablis
Tel: +33 3 86 18 94 47
www.nathalieetgillesfevre.com

Nathalie on 2015:
“2015 was a little rushed due to the hail: It fell mainly in the next valley, but if it had arrived just one week earlier it would have been a catastrophe! Fortunately we were ready to harvest and the grapes were ripe. Overall it was a hot year, but we have good juice – it tastes good, but about 20-25% less quantity. Les Preuses was about 40hl/ha, Vaulorent 42, the rest more like 45. Malos are a natural process, so there was no intervention here.

“Certainly it was a very dry year, but for us, we’ve a much larger volume in (AOC) Chablis and these vines suffered less, high up on the hills, still we were lucky to have some useful rain the weekend of 8th August.”

Nathalie on 2014:
We harvested from 17/18 September, let’s see the wines:

2012 and 2013 had a small increase, so no price increases here this year.

The wines…

Some of the 2014s will be bottled after 6 months as there’s no wine.

2014 Chablis
From all around the village, mainly quite high, some parts deliver florals, others acidity, others are more mineral and saline.
Good depth, tighter width. Lovely fresh, width – fine texture, waves of flavour. This is super wide and super tasty – Bravo!

2014 Chablis 1er Fourchaume
From close to the border with Vaupulent.
A hint more herb to the depth, but also rather tight. Wider, again beautifully textured. Bright notes of complexity, lots of layers and individual notes. A seriously fine intensity and finishing wave of flavour. Encore, bravo! Super contemplative finish, but far from contemplative in the mouth.

2014 Chablis 1er Mont de Milieu
Always a little later maturing compared to Fourchaume or Vaulorent, despite direct south-facing – ‘its a mystery!’ 15% oak but nothing new for elevage.
Here is a more seashore nose, appealing though the depth is tighter and harder to read. Wide, lovely waves of flavour – really a different flavour profile – again with waves of finely textured flavour. More weight to the fresh flavour, ripeness but perfectly encapsulated by the acidity. Excellent. A very nice line in the finish too.

2014 Chablis 1er Vaulorent
Available in the market from July august, still on 13. Bottled just before Christmas.
Wide and complex, faint complexity of wood – seems like a grand cru. Really direct, mineral, faintly padded, layered wine. There’s a hint of salinity here too – just a little less texture than a grand cru, but not much else is missing. Simply an excellent wine, based on previous bottles, you won’t notice the oak when it’s finally released. Excellent.
2014 Chablis Les Preuses
Only on 2012 for commercialising.
A bigger, wider panorama of aroma. Faint salty seashore too. Virtually no fat here, but really a brilliant, lithe, supple concentration of flavour, again waves of flavour. Super-mineral, but with a texture and sucrosity that brings great pleasure. A brighter, fresher wave for the finish – really extra long. Another winner – bravo!

2013 Chablis 1er Vaulorent
Wide, saline, deep with an implied texture too – this is very inviting. Rounder, a more central concentration, but real concentration of more obvious fruit, slightly exotic fruit. Intense flavour that only slowly fades in the finish – a little green citrus accent to finish too. Yum!

2013 Chablis Les Preuses
Much more depth and good width too, more of an accent of seashore here plus a more obvious fruit. Wide, layered flavour, silky and sweet, really a little more fat than the 2014, but still based in minerality. The fruit is sweet and a little exotic. But a great finish here – lingering in fine fashion.

2012 Chablis Les Preuses
Less wide but with a super depth. Nothing exotic here, just a good ripe lemon-style fruit and a slightly saline top note. Wow! Instant attack – but nothing aggressive. A broad wave of fresh flavour that is primary yet complex. Just a brilliant wine. The nose gets better in the glass. Great wine – and I bought some.

2009 Chablis Les Preuses
Starts with a faint toasty reduction, but soon, very pretty and precise notes start to escape the glass. Wide, voluptuous, crowd-pleasing flavour – lots of minerality but padded with a couple of inches of flesh. Still a baby but generous and complex. An understated but very long and contemplative finish that remains tasty yet mineral. Super longer. The aromas are ever-changing. Very yum indeed!

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