Tasted in Beines with Françoise Michaut – mother of Adrien, wife of Bernard, 25 January 2022.
Domaine de La Motte
41 rue du Ruisseau
89800 Beine
Tel: + 33 3 86 42 49 61
www.chablis-michaut.fr
More reports with Domaine de la Motte
Françoise on 2021:
“We are actually happy with what we achieved – it was 45 hl/ha here. 60% export, 20% to restaurants and 20% sold from the cellar here – from 52 hectares. All the vines with aspersion were not bad, Vau-Lignau was a good surprise, the Beauroy a little less – the current of air was really unusual because things that don’t normally frost did… It was still a big work with with the candles – we did stock ahead and if there’d been no frost we’d have enough for 10 years!”
Françoise on 2020:
“Not a ‘pletoric’ harvest but it was correct – there wasn’t enough to apply for a VCI. We’ve still never seen the cellar so empty. The biggest problem here in Chablis is to find enough people to work in the vines…”
The wines…
A simply outstanding range of wines – really a very fine address for 2020s and I think even better than their super range of 2019s!
All DIAM5 since 2013 with some other DIAM-style closures in 2019 – ‘we’re not going back!’ The wines all have cuvée names on the back labels but not the main labels – it’s the first time that I noted it – so I include in the description this year. We also have new labels – white for the Petit Chablis and the Chablis and blue for all the others:
That’s a properly open and saline nose – it’s very attractive. Luxuriously textural, mobile, fluid – I try not to get carried away with the first wine of the day – but this is great. Delicious citrus and citrus skin bitters – Bravo!
Deeper, fuller aromas at the base – a more overt yellow citrus for this wine with some fine green accents. Wider, cooler, fresher over the palate – yellow-citrus here. Intense, invigorating. Finishing with a lick of salinity too and it’s faintly floral. Different and equally grand!
40-60-year-old vines, some of the oldest vines today in Beine. Vines from grandparents. Here with some (25%) barrel and demi-muids for elevage.
The higher tones that were less evident on the last – pure, clean, also floral – a great nose. More overtly mineral and saline. A wine 100% from this place. So juicy and flinty. Bravo! Strong finishing – keep this back a couple of years!
2020 Chablis 1er Vau Ligneau
Like the vv this has 25% elevage in barrel – but 600-litre barrels.
Narrower but a more vertical nose of florals above ad purest minerals at the base. Wide, melting, extra saline again, extra greenery in the flavours but this is another invigorating and delicious wine today. Where it adds to the last is the width of finishing flavour – calm here but really contemplative and wide – it’s gorgeous here.
2020 Chablis 1er Beauroy
Here with 40% large barrel elevage.
A fuller nose, of width and saline energy, it slowly adds a little floral energy too. Here the rounding of the wine by the oak is more visible but it’s still a beautifully textured and perfectly posed wine – there’s tension. But I would keep this a few years in the cellar with the hope of seeing something more incisive. Don’t get me wrong, this is excellent wine – this is only the extra I’m looking for, for a great wine. Small waves of deliciously pure flavour to remember it by.