Aging Chablis

I

Ian Fitzsimmons

Ian Fitzsimmons
I saw a well-respected importer write a while back that Chablis is one of the best ageing white Burgundies, and that off-vintages often age better, because of high acidity. My books give guidelines of something like 1-3 for AC, 3-5 for premier, and 5-10 for GC. I've only dabbled, but these estimates seem quite low; I would say that decent AC just begins its uptick at about 3 years, and PC at five or so. On the other hand, some folks are drinking their PCs and GCs at the earliest possible moment out of fear of premature oxidation.

What are others' experiences? I'm especially intrigued by the idea that high acidity in under-ripe Chablis vintages makes for better-ageing wines.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.
 
It depends on the producer, but for good producers, the wines can age for very long periods of time -- well in excess of 40 years for top premiers and grands crus. I'd say for village Chablis, drink on release, then 5-10 years. For premier cru, start at 8-10 years. For grand cru, start at 10-12 years.
 
Of the 99 bottles of Chardonnay based wines I have in the cellar, 66 are from Burgundy with 55 from Chablis.. they go back to '98 with most from '02 (28 btls)... I may be stupid but I have chosen to take the chance..
Most are Premier level with many fewer Grand Cru.
Perhaps my "tale of woe" will unfold on these pages but to this point I have been quite fortunate.
 
I have some 20+ year-old Raveneau from off vintages, and they are spectacular. I try to ration my drinking to one bottle every year or two because they are irreplaceable!
 
I'm pretty biased in favor of Chablis, when it comes to Chardonnay-based wines, though I'm getting interested now in the 'nose bleed' areas of Burgundy - Auxey, Savigy, St. Aubin.

Who in Chablis qualifies as a 'good producer,' beyond the holy trinity (Dauvissat, Raveneau, and Fevre)?
 
originally posted by Ian Fitzsimmons:
Who in Chablis qualifies as a 'good producer,' beyond the holy trinity (Dauvissat, Raveneau, and Fevre)?
Click to expand...
I've enjoyed De Moor, Dampt, and Brocard.
 
billaud-simon is top notch. louis michel is great in an all-stainless steel sort of way, which means the wines need even longer to evolve. as of about 2002, droin has left their old low-down, cheatin', over-oaky ways, and has great vineyard sites.
 
Gilbert Picq is a solid producer. Stainless steel all the way. I haven't had the chance to test their age-worthiness yet, but I'm willing to bet the AC will be long-lived.
 
I've heard good things about most of the producers mentioned, especially Picq and Brocard at the 'lower' levels.

Claude, for the long agers, what proportion of their 'trajectory,' in your experience, is improvement, and what proportion is plateau (very generally speaking, of course).
 
I recently bought on sale at a local store a case of 2002 Jean et Sebastien Dauvissat Chablis 1er Cru Montmain for $25/bottle. I don't know the reliability of this producer, but this wine is drinking very well right now with richness and complexity. It's a great value for the quality.

I've also had some very good low end Brocard wines and would like to try more of their more upscale wines.

best,
bill
 
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