This has aromas of biscuits, sliced apples, grapefruit pith and crushed stones. Mineral and focused, with a medium body and excellent textural weight. Persistent, too. Drink now.
The better of Fèvre's two Chablis cuvées - the other one is a négociant blend - this very lightly wooded cuvée comes mostly from old-vine parcels and is commendably reliable. Pear and boiled sweet notes segue into a fresh, sappy, tapering palate.
Domaine wine with 50-year-old vines from a number of vineyards, including north-facing plots underneath Les Lys, north west facing opposite Vaillons and south facing around Troesmes, plus some mineral soils from around Chichée. Intense and driven, you can smell the Kimmeridgian. Great energy and focus. Spice on the finish, precise acidity. Will age for many years. Bottled just before the 2021 harvest.
From Kemmeridgian soils, with just a 10% touch of oak, then back into stainless steel to keep freshness. A model Chablis, merging fruit definition, energy, and minerality; linear, saline, vertical.
A sleeper of the vintage, Fèvre's 2019 Chablis Village opens in the glass with notes of citrus oil, white flowers, crisp green apple and oyster shell. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and chiseled, it's taut and concentrated, with racy acids and a long, chalky finish. Produced from some 40 hectares of vineyards, averaging around 50 years old, this was cropped at yields of 43 hectoliters per hectare. Unusually intense and structured, readers willing to give this cuvée a bit of bottle age will be rewarded.
Notes of mineral reduction and quinine add breadth to the aromas of green apple, lemon-lime and discreet floral nuances. There is slightly better density to the attractively textured medium-bodied flavors that are even more saline-inflected on the balanced, dry and lingering finale. A quality Chablis villages.
The 2021 Chablis Village comes from 46-hectares of vines and was cropped at 20hl/ha, the vines converted to organic two years ago and due for certification next year. It has a steely nose at first, opening nicely with hints of honeysuckle and wild peaches. The palate is well balanced with a fine thread of acidity, taut and focused, plenty of energy here with an added touch of spice that enlivens the finish. No doubt this will represent great value-for-money.
Intense aromas of grapefruit-like citrus and a slight cedary note even though there is minimal oak influence. Stony, too. I detect a little bit of SO2 but this is probably just because it is a half-bottle tank sample and needed to be protected en route. Relatively powerful, crisp and with a lot of intensity for a generic Chablis wine. Rounded but with a core of freshness.
Seems a bit more appealing and crisp than the sample tasted at chez Goedhuis. But still a bit appley rather than stony. Good acidity. If I saw this on a not-very-good wine list, I'd be happy to order it.
A slightly fresher nose speaks of mineral reduction, apple and soft floral scents. There is a lovely sense of energy to the attractively textured, rich and delicious middle weight flavors that possess much better depth and persistence. One to consider.
