Chablis, while having it’s own distinct style and flavor profiles, is still a part of the wine region of “Burgundy”. The further northern latitude produces wines with more acidity and lower fruit flavors than Chardonnay grown in southern Burgundy. Chablis also typically uses a lot less oak than their southern counterparts.
For my non-wine friends, Burgundy is known for two grape varietals, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay (aka Red Burgundy and White Burgundy). Chablis ONLY makes Chardonnay.
Our first stop after we checked in was a snack and of course, some Chablis.
We walked about 50 yards for a tasting at one of the most famous wineries in Chablis, William-Fevre. The rocks below are descriptive of the type of soil in the region.
Excellent tasting of about 7 wines, ending with the Grand Cru, which was very good. The 2019 was even better that the 2018, but it was so acidic I didn’t think it would be ready to drink for a decade! Who’s got that kind of time?
The next day I had three tastings lined up, but Kim wasn’t feeling very well, so I did these solo. All three of these wineries sell their wine via Garagiste, a Seattle area importer I use to buy the bulk of my white wines. First up was Domaine Charly Nicolle.
The winery owners wife Lucie took time out of her busy day to pour me a bunch of their wine. She was busy boxing up shipments when I arrived, so I tried not to linger too long. The wines were all excellent, and I look forward to seeing them come up on Garagiste soon. Unfortunately I didn’t get shots of any of the people I was tasting with in Chablis.
This shot shows the vineyards nearby.
I drove up into the vineyards on the opposing hillside to get a better photo.
The vineyards on the top of the hills are much rockier than at the lower levels.
Tasting #2 was Eleonore Moreau. Eleonore is one of the few female winemakers in Chablis, but that’s changing. Her father is the farmer, and would rather be out in the vineyard all day, and that’s just fine by her. She ages her Chablis in stainless steel tanks for much longer than most other producers to achieve an elevated flavor profile. Excellent wines that I’ve yet to see on Garagiste, but will be watching out for them. The 1er Cru in particular was outstanding, with lovely acidity and minerality.
My last tasting was with Guillaume Vrignaud, winemaker for Domaine Vrignaud. Stock photo since I was so lame with my camera.
This was my favorite tasting in Chablis, as Guillaume is a passionate advocate for the region, and was able to answer all of my wine geeky questions. They have a super cool tasting room in their cellar, which was a nice break from the heat of the summer day.
He also opened a ton of his wine, including a 2015 that he wanted me to try to see how well Chablis can age. I ended up bringing one of those home to open with friends.
I buy a lot of Domaine Vrignaud from Garagiste, but after tasting several of his wines I’ll definitely be ordering more than I usually do. Thanks so much Guillaume!
On the way back into the little town of Chablis, I stopped and took some photos of the Grand Cru vineyards.
The Grand Cru “Les Clos” vineyard in the foreground, the town of Chablis in the background.
Before we departed the next morning I brought Kim up to the top of the Grand Cru lookout.
I definitely found Chablis to be a worthwhile trip, just don’t expect it to have the amenities that can be found in southern Burgundy. Regardless, it’s a great spot and you won’t see many tourists, and I love that aspect of it. Just need to brush up on what little French I know, as the locals barely speak English.
This marked the end of our trip, minus our horrible plane flight home…21 hours on a flight that was supposed to last 10….it was too horrid to relive right now. I’ll likely mention it in a trip wrap up.. Thanks for reading!
