Tasted in Fyé with Sébastien Christophe (blinded by the sun, again), 23 January 2020.
Domaine Christophe et Fils
Ferme des Carrieres
89800 Fyé
Tel: +33 3 86 55 02 83
More reports for Domaine Christophe et Fils
Sébastien on 2019:
“Frost in the spring – not the biggest frost but the weather was cold and windy and the vines took a long time to start growing. There was a little hail in May which slowed the vines down, then the poor weather at flowering – the result was fewer grapes on the vines. There was also the effect of the heat and dry of the summer. We harvested with correct degrees and good acidity. The only negative was the lower volume – between 25% and 30% down versus the typical rendement. The vines seem balanced and coherent – let’s see.”
Sébastien on 2018:
In 2018 we had much more volume, though not astronomical – I’m quite happy with the wines.”
The wines…
Wines of finesse, elegance but no lack of intensity, energy or a fizzing line of energy and vivacious deliciousness! As a minimum, excellent but plenty of bravo!
Currently the wines are sealed with cork for the old-vine cuvée and the 1er crus, DIAM-style for the Petit Chablis and actual DIAM for the Chablis.
Hmm – that’s lovely; freshness and line of vibrant, almost acid fuit. Wide, saline, mineral – that’s a wine with a lovely acid-tension. I like this a lot, the finishing line of flavour is really super! Bravo PC in 2018.
2018 Chablis
Actually that’s a lovely open nose, a hint more airy freshness, fine acid-led fruit – fine aromatic clarity. A little more supple, more depth of flavour, in the same style as the PC – long, juicy, slightly sweeter agrume finishing. Excellent Chablis in 2018.
60-year-old vines in 2019, planted by grandfather – 10-12% in 228 barrels – bottled close to the 2019 harvest, unlike the first two which were done in April.
The family nose is present, but here the width is less fruit-driven, more mineral. More direct, equally vibrant, more saline and mineral in the middle. Love that finishing line of acid-led, no hard edges, delicious fruit. Bravo!
Same vinification and bottling for all the 1er crus, bottled at the start of September, 20% barrels used in elevage. ‘The vinification is exactly the same for the 1ers, so it is the individual sites that speak.’:
2018 Chablis 1er Fourchaume
It’s the family-style of nose – the elevage – a little more compact than the last. There is more flavour energy to match wine energy here, a small extra from the wood that you don’t see on the nose, then a wide, beautiful, proper width of Fourchaume mineral width – a seriously great width of flavour here – excellent wine.
A little more open, no aromatic oak, just a little extra emphasis to the agrume-style fruit in the aroma. More mouth-filling, much more scale, a wine of agrume and minerals, only the merest suggestion of oak – it’s almost gone. A little more serious structure as you approach the finish – the first with a proper slug of finishing salinity. A minimum of excellence, this could be even better!
2018 Chablis 1er Montée de Tonnerre
Here the nose has just a little more depth, a little less width – but it’s still something of a beauty. Here I see more coolness, more weight but with a more airy finesse. You’re met by a wall of minerality but never hard. Just a faint impression of barrel today in the structure as you approach the finish. Calm wine despite plenty of balance. Here saline again, and finishing with wide waves of interest.