Tasted in Chablis with Marine Race and the new dog!
24 January 2017.
Domaine Laurence et Denis Race
5 rue de Chichée
89800 Chablis
Tel: +33 3 86 42 45 87
www.chablis-race.com
Claire on 2016:
“In 2016 we lost 3 hectares – half due to hail the other half was the frost. But the vines were okay – some maladies too of-course – and it wasn’t just mildew, there was some botrytis right at the last-minute! We have sold a little less in bulk, so have the same level of bottles to commercialise.”
Claire on 2015:
Hail on almost all our parcels – we were really in the centre. It was the first harvest in new cuverie, and nothing was ready as we had been expecting to start 1 week later. We did manual harvest to save the important stuff and fortunately, we had a lot of help from neighbours too – it was really appreciated. Still, we lost at least 60%. We also took out the Blanchots vines for replanting after the harvest…
“But at least the vintage was easy!
The wines…
Less wine to taste this year, but there’s a new dog to pet! As usual some super bottles!
2015 Petit Chablis – already sold out…
2015 Chablis
Wide, fresh, nicely citrus accented. Good volume with a green lime-style fruit, ripe, a little richness of texture. Wide in the mouth, and an extra level of intensity in the finish – here a little rigour to the minerality. Very tasty wine!
2015 Chablis 1er Montmains
All but the old vines included here.
A little more width and also a little more complexity. More attack, more direct. Nice texture and a super line of flavour – salinity and minerality with the classic sweetness of Chablis’ melting acidity. Just a suggestion of more tropical fruit in the finish. Excellent.
2015 Chablis 1er Vaillons
A nose of more interesting complexity – flashes of very pretty citrus and a nice clarity. Hmm, more mineral, wider, less linear, but really a very engaging complexity – this is super. Just a hint more rigour in the finishing minerality – but very modestly so. This is lovely wine again.
More aromatic volume, more complex but a subtle complexity. Ooh – that’s super – direct, really über-mineral yet held with fine texture. And there’s a certain zing to the flavour. A really tasty finish too – bravo, and ultra classic too. Yum!
From 56 year-old vines, in Butteaux.
A really lovely saline aromatic – super-classic. Bright, cool fruit, mineral, great volume. This has layers and layers of flavour – also a hint of the more ripe, more exotic fruit in the finish – but a wine with real panache – gorgeous!
And of-course, there is no Blanchots for a few years…