Chablis 2020 continues a run of very fine vintages in this key Burgundy appellation. The word most heard during my recent visit to Chablis was ‘classic’. While 2020 may not quite have the linear acidity of 2014, there are a lot of similarities with 2017, another classic year.
Although 2020 was a very early vintage, it was not a particularly hot one and managed to avoid the dramatic heat spikes of 2018 and 2019. My high tasting scores suggested that this is a vintage which can be rated at least four stars, with a wide incidence of five-star wines.
Domaine Séguinot Bordet’s Jean-François Bordet, president of the BIVB Chablis commission, says ‘it was a very classic vintage’. Olivier Bailly (Domaine Billaud-Simon) echoes that verdict, confirming: ‘2020 is more like 2014 and 2017 than 2018 or 2019.’ Vincent Dauvissat, whom I visited while he was dashing around in the cellar moving wines between barrels, stopped long enough to describe the year as a ‘magnificent’ vintage. On a visit to Domaine François Raveneau, Isabelle Raveneau reconfirmed the general view, noting that 2020 was ‘more classic than 2019’.
RECIPE FOR SUCCESS
Following the reduced crop in 2019, and the exceedingly difficult 2016 vintage (devastated by bouts of frost and hail), the weather in 2020 was generally kind to Chablis producers. Winter saw plenty of rainfall to boost water reserves and the mild start to the year encouraged early budburst, although producers feared the worst when temperatures plummeted at the end of March and early April. Bailly said he had spent seven nights in his vineyards lighting frost-protection candles (bougies), but fortunately damage was slight and only affected the lowest sites.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة January 2022 من Decanter.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة January 2022 من Decanter.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
A Resource for the World? - Argentina is unique in the genetic diversity preserved in much of its vine material. With climate change and disease posing increasing threats worldwide, Catena Zapata winery is asking what lessons can be learned to protect vineyards within and beyond the nation's borders
Argentina is unique in the genetic diversity preserved in much of its vine material. With climate change and disease posing increasing threats worldwide, Catena Zapata winery is asking what lessons can be learned to protect vineyards within and beyond the nation’s borders
Great Cabernets of South America
Other varieties may hog the limelight across South America, but the world’s most popular grape for red wines has played a critical role in the continent's wine heritage. We trace Cabernet Sauvignon’s story here, and recommend 16 benchmark wines to try
PROVENCE by train and bike
With rail links to Paris, Nice, Marseilles and beyond, a vast network of cycle paths and quiet roads, and a plethora of historic wine estates, Provence is an ideal destination for an eco-friendly, car-free and carefree) holiday
IN THE MIX
These days most of the world’s vineyards are planted to just a single variety, but what happens when multiple varieties are planted, harvested and blended together?
Malvasia A BUYER'S GUIDE
If ever a grape was hard to pin down, it'd be Malvasia. Indeed it’s not even a single grape variety. In all of its many varied, and often completely unrelated guises, it has been the mainstay of popular wine styles across the centuries. Our expert takes a closer look...
RIBERA ADOPTS THE NEW OLD WAYS
It’s not so much a new direction for winemakers in Ribera del Duero, but a growing recognition that traditional methods and wine styles set aside by the previous generation can now provide a way ahead to revitalise the region
Roussanne around the world
Up for a challenge? For winemakers as much as wine drinkers, getting a handle on a mercurial grape such as Roussanne isn't easy. But wherever it's grown, when the balance is right, it truly repays the effort
Napa Cabernet 2021
There's a lot of excitement about this vintage, in which conditions were relatively calm and temperatures stable through summer. Ongoing drought reduced yields but intensified flavours, but it means quantities are down and you may need to act fast to secure top wines. Our Napa correspondent selects 60 great wines from more than 500 that he tasted, with many very high scores
10 reason to discover Uruguay
Squeezed between Brazil and Argentina on the Atlantic coast, Uruguay has mostly flown under the tourist radar - until now. Once dubbed 'the Switzerland of the Americas', it's a welcoming country that has much to offer the travelling wine lover
Leo Erazo
The old vines and special terroir of Itata, southern Chile, have beena source of inspiration for this intrepid winemaker. The 2023 fires were a setback, but his commitment to this ancient wine land is undiminished
