2014 Chablis, Les Clos, Grand Cru, Jean-Paul & Benoît Droin, Burgundy

  • White
  • Dry
  • Full Bodied
  • Chardonnay
Ready - youthful
Product: 20141067039
2014 Chablis, Les Clos, Grand Cru, Jean-Paul & Benoît Droin, Burgundy

Description

Pale in colour with a fine, light green tint, this is massively concentrated and flinty. Although backward, you can see what will happen when it is eventually ready. The most complete wine of all in the mouth, with striking minerals wreathed in concentrated fruit, this is ripe but not over-ripe.

The vineyards near to Chablis itself were affected by the heat at Whitsun, which damaged the flowering, so the quantity of wine is no better than last year. Outlying communes, however, were less impacted. Benoît began the harvest early, on 11th September. He compares 2014 to 1996, 2007 (only richer) and 2010 (only more mineral). A recent development here is for the wines to be fermented using their own indigenous yeasts.
Colour White
Sweetness Dry
Vintage 2014
Maturity Ready - youthful
Grape List Chardonnay
Body Full Bodied
Producer Jean-Paul & Benoît Droin

About this wine

Chardonnay

Chardonnay is often seen as the king of white wine grapes and one of the most widely planted in the world It is suited to a wide variety of soils, though it excels in soils with a high limestone content as found in Champagne, Chablis, and the Côte D`Or. Burgundy is Chardonnay's spiritual home and the best White Burgundies are dry, rich, honeyed wines with marvellous poise, elegance and balance. They are unquestionably the finest dry white wines in the world. Chardonnay plays a crucial role in the Champagne blend, providing structure and finesse, and is the sole grape in Blanc de Blancs.
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Jean-Paul & Benoit Droin

The Droins have been producing wines in Chablis for nearly 400 years (their history as vignerons goes back at least to 1620). Benoît represents the14th generation of Droins and is one of the most dynamic winemakers in the region. His father Jean-Paul put the domaine on the map but perhaps went too far down the road of new oak barrels.  The domaine owns 13 hectares of vineyards and produces 14 different wines, including Petit Chablis, Chablis, 7 Premiers Crus and 5 Grands Crus. Benoît runs a more sophisticated operation from a large modern winery almost in the shadow of the grands crus. He has revised his pruning system and significantly reduced yields. In the cellar the principal change has been away from new oak. Each wine now gets the treatment which Benoît thinks is suited to its terroir. Thus Petit Chablis, Chablis, premiers crus Vaucoupin and Côte de Lechet, and grand cru Blanchots are all fermented and matured in tank. Vaillons, Mont de Milieu and Montée de Tonnerre receive 25 per cent of barrel fermentation and maturation, 35 per cent for Vosgros and Vaudésir, 40 per cent for Montmains and Valmur, peaking at 50 per cent for Fourchaume, Grenouilles and Les Clos. However the age of the oak and the choice of tonnelier may vary according to the cuvée. The maximum new oak is ten per cent in the grands crus. Droin says "I use less new oak now than I did 10 years ago; my feeling is that you don`t make your best wines in new oak barrels." Although these are rich, full-bodied, buttery wines, they still manage to retain a steeliness, raciness and purity of fruit which are the hallmarks of classic Chablis. Jasper Morris MW
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