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Albert Bichot 2007 Chablis

My visit to see the vineyards of Albert Bichot was naturally centred on the Côte d'Or, but I was glad that Chablis was included. It is too long since I last visited this little town and its magnificent sweep of grand cru vineyards which lie just to the north - more than ten years, in fact. After a long drive up from Beaune we first took a walk out in the vineyards, in particular Long-Depaquit's jewel La Moutonne, before heading back into the town to visit the cellars and for tasting.

The Long-Depaquit estate was in the ownership of the Abbey of Pontigny for more than six centuries, from 1128 until it was wrested from their hands during the Revolution. At that time it was purchased by Depaquit who had distanced himself from the church, and subsequently it came into the sole ownership of Albert Bichot. There are 65 hectares of vines, which includes 10% of the entire grand cru vineyard (second only to the 15% owned by Fèvre), with plots in six of the named sites including La Moutonne, an INAO-approved description for a 2.35 hectare plot of vines which straddles Les Preuses and Vaudésir (the latter accounts for most of it). La Moutonne, originally planted by the Cistercian monks of Pontigny, came to Bichot with the Long-Depaquit domaine.

Standing in La Moutonne one is immediately struck by the anti-frost measures in place here. There are several options utilised across the Chablis vineyards, including oil-burning stoves and water-sprinklers, but Bichot have opted, in a joint venture undertaken with William Fèvre, for electrical heating. As a consequence the rows of vines owned by these two are easy to pick out, each being marked by thick black cables that run between the posts along with the training wires, and also by the control boxes at the bottom of the slopes (shown right). La Moutonne is also a little special for being at the centre of the amphitheatre of the grand cru vines, so it receives the sun for longer than some other sites, and it is also set back from the central valley a little more than its neighbours, protecting it from the cooler air to be found there. The vines are naturally all Chardonnay, and in recent decades there has been a move away from the Champagne clones towards those associated more with quality rather than quantity. There is a continued program of replanting vine-by-vine, and the fruit from young vines is discarded for the first seven or eight years before it is then included in the harvest and taken to the domaine for vinification.

After harvest, by hand for the premier and grand cru vineyards and by machine for the generic wines, the fruit is transported to the winery just a few minutes drive away near the centre of town, where it is destemmed and then pressed using pneumatic equipment; there is a plan, however, to introduce whole-bunch pressing for the grand cru wines as it is felt that this might allow for a more gentle procedure, based on the theory that the stems provide a network of channels through the solids for the juice to escape. After settling for 3-4 days the juice is then pumped up to the fermentation vessels; most of the wines harvested will see stainless steel fermentation, although a percentage of the premier and grand cru wines will be fermented in oak, and an even smaller percentage of this oak will be new. With a variety of sizes of vats, including some very small, all thermo-regulated, this is a cool, plot-by-plot fermentation. The first fermentation lasts 15-30 days, after which comes the malolactic fermentation, sometimes the following spring; the temperature of the vat can be allowed to rise a little if this is turning out to be problematic. Once complete, the wine is blended in the Long-Depaquit cellars, before transport to the Bichot facility in Beaune where it is bottled.

The wines tasted here were largely of the 2007 vintage (hence the title), although in several cases there were corresponding examples from 2006 which facilitated a number of useful side-by-side comparisons. I have organised the notes in this write-up by ranking and vineyard, which is how we tasted them; we started with the generic Chablis (from the 2008 vintage), followed by a number of premiers crus all from the 2007 vintage. Then came two pairs from Les Blanchots and Vaudésirs, the 2007 and 2006 vintages in each case, before a finale comprising several vintages of Bichot's best known and most esoteric grand cru, La Moutonne, from 2007 back to 2001 (sadly missing a couple of vintages). As you might imagine it made for a very instructive tasting, and I found the quality of the wines to generally be very high.

This mini-profile has been incorporated into my Albert Bichot profile, along with all the notes presented below on wines tasted at the Long-Depaquit cellars. In case it isn't already transparent this visit to Chablis, and this tasting, is the result of hospitality from Albert Bichot. If you feel that might have impaired my judgement of the wines, please bear that in mind when reading my notes. (3/6/09)

Albert Bichot 2007 Chablis - Tasting Notes

The following wines were tasted in March 2009. Click for stockists.

Albert Bichot Domaine Long-Depaquit Chablis 2008: This has lovely freshness, even a little plumpness to the nose, with acacia perfume. A very attractive beginning. A fresh palate, white stone, white fruit too, with good fat and floral overtones, although with appropriate substance and texture. Underneath it all, a lovely tingling acidity. For the appellation, very good. 15.5/20

Albert Bichot Domaine Long-Depaquit Chablis Premier Cru Les Vaillons 2007: Just 10% of the final blend sees some oak here. Pure honeyed stone here, a little oak influence, but with floral and herbal elements too. Perhaps a little orange blossom too? Lean and reserved on the palate, but still very well composed, quite substantial in terms of structure, rounded and polished. Stony fruit. A good texture and substance but structure is the most prominent component. 16.5/20

Albert Bichot Domaine Long-Depaquit Chablis Premier Cru Les Beugnons 2007: No oak at all in this cuvée. A stony character to the nose, with honey-herbal elements, and a slightly greener fruit character than the preceding wine. A softer texture on entry, a touch more fat but still a very rounded, polished, structured wine. In the midpalate it is more creamy and textured, but there are great acids here too. Reserved, but with a slightly brighter character. Very good. 16+/20

Albert Bichot Domaine Long-Depaquit Chablis Premier Cru Les Lys 2007: No oak at all in this cuvée. A floral, white-flower nose. On the palate this is another wine with a stony character, although it is broader in texture, richer, with a substantial palate. This substance is draped over vibrant acidity and stony precision. This has a very good and bright style, with a mineral, linear character. 16.5+/20

Albert Bichot Domaine Long-Depaquit Chablis Premier Cru Les Vaucopins 2007: There is 20% oak in this cuvée. A more honeyed nose here, no doubt reflecting this. Still the same polished style though, and a fairly weighty, attractive palate. Less vibrant acidity, a broad and quite honeyed character, and a mouth-filling substance. Nicely balanced, minerally, and although a touch softer than Les Lys there are extra dimensions here I think. 16.5-17+/20

Albert Bichot Domaine Long-Depaquit Chablis Grand Cru Les Blanchots 2007: The nose here is bright, fresh, perfumed, with a touch of acacia and almond-honey from the oak I suspect. In fact this latter element is fairly noticeable here. Nevertheless the wine has good substance, and there is a bitter tinge to the midpalate which again I think indicates the oak outweighs the fruit, and it gives and rather firm, grippy style. Good, but this is a touch off-key I think. 16-16.5+/20

Albert Bichot Domaine Long-Depaquit Chablis Grand Cru Les Blanchots 2006: The first sample was deemed corked and replaced. The second showed a wealth of fresh, stony, linear fruit. The palate has a similarly stony quality, nicely textured too. Attractive, gentle acidity. It is rather leaner in style than I might expect for grand cru level, and this may reflect the position of Les Blanchots, which is a cooler site with a southwest aspect at the end of the run of grand cru vineyards behind the town. 16+/20

Albert Bichot Domaine Long-Depaquit Chablis Grand Cru Les Vaudésirs 2007: More showy fruit on the nose here than Les Blanchots, with a dense and concentrated character, very reminiscent of dried fruits. With a little air, a tinge of honey-oak becomes more apparent. A big style of wine, broad with a lot of depth and texture, and a warmer, riper, peach skin and apricot fruit character. Gentle acidity, good substance, lovely density. This is fine stuff. 17.5-18+/20

Albert Bichot Domaine Long-Depaquit Chablis Grand Cru Les Vaudésirs 2006: Honeyed oak on the nose here, nevertheless it still seems quite vibrant, with delicious golden fruits, peach skin and even a hint of exotic fruits, perhaps lychee? The texture is beautiful in a very flattering style, very creamy and rounded, soft and fleshy, with less acidity perhaps in keeping with the vintage. Good grip beneath these rich fruits. Although a fatter style, still well balanced. 17-17.5+/20

Albert Bichot Domaine Long-Depaquit Chablis Grand Cru La Moutonne 2007: An expressive nose, pure and concentrated fruit, peach and stone fruit character. Broad, minerally, textured but with a very fine, stony, linear precision. This has beautiful substance, good acidity, and a great, textured balance. A fine composition with an appealing length. Very fine. 18-18.5+/20

Albert Bichot Domaine Long-Depaquit Chablis Grand Cru La Moutonne 2006: Plenty of plump fruit on the nose here, linear and slightly citrusy. Broad, clean, rich, sappy and substantial texture on the palate, rich and yet bright. Great grip underneath. This seems to fit with 2006 having been a warmer vintage for the region. This is big, creamy, textured, with soft and ripe stone fruit. Very impressive. 17.5+/20

Albert Bichot Domaine Long-Depaquit Chablis Grand Cru La Moutonne 2005: Massive character on the nose here, with a huge panoply of honeyed, oaky fruit. Rich and golden, orchard fruit sweetness, slightly dried in character. An impressive minerally seam on the palate, soft grip at the core, but with good acidity too. This is a big, exotic wine of certain grand cru quality. It is just so complete, so harmonious, with richness, elegance and grip. That oak needs to integrate though. 18.5+/20

Albert Bichot Domaine Long-Depaquit Chablis Grand Cru La Moutonne 2003: Massively characterful on the nose, full of exotic, dried, straw-tinged fruit, overlaid with elements of honey and vanilla. The palate is rich and textured, but I am somewhat surprised to find it less huge and exotic than the 2005. Broad, textured, substantial, stony but very creamy too. This lacks the brightness of fruit that I find in some of the other wines, but it certainly doesn't lack grip, substance or structure. 17.5+/20

Albert Bichot Domaine Long-Depaquit Chablis Grand Cru La Moutonne 2001: At close to eight years of age this wine is beginning to show some mature, honey-mineral and honeycomb elements on the nose. The palate is rich, golden and sweet, big and soft, and rather broad in character. There is star anise spice and the flavour of freshly cut hay. This is maturing very nicely indeed, but it retains its grip, underneath a big and soft style. It is perhaps a touch diffuse at the finish, for which I have to mark it down a little I think, but a good wine nevertheless. 16.5/20