William Fevre Chablis 1er Cru Vaillons 2020 (BH92)

Country:               France
Region:                 Burgundy Rating:                  BH92, RP93, WS93
Grape Variety:    100% Chardonnay
Type of Wine:      White Wine
Bottle Size:          750ml

Burghound 92
Touches of menthol and wood surround the floral and pepper scented nose that isn't quite as fresh as that of the Montmains. There is by contrast good energy to the very rich and nicely voluminous flavors that conclude in a bitter lemon and intensely saline-inflected finale.

Wine Advocate 93
Derived from old vines in Les Minots (that are a source for the Fèvre massale selection), as well as holdings in Roncières and Chatains, the 2020 Chablis 1er Cru Vaillons unwinds in the glass with notes of white flowers, crisp stone fruit and clear honey. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and enveloping, it's a beautifully vibrant, racy wine that concludes with a long, penetrating finish. It's the best young Vaillons I've ever tasted chez Fèvre. The 2020 vintage makes the first year of official organic conversion for 78-hectare Domaine William Fèvre, though it's actually the 15th year the estate has been practicing organic. Didier Séguier reported that the year's challenges were twofold: having to pick harvest dates with unerring precision, and the necessity to sort out sunburnt grapes. The results, however, are once again exceptional, and it's hard to think of any of Chablis's larger estates that can match Fèvre for consistency and quality across the board. The 2020s, as ever bottled under Diam, are certainly built to evolve gracefully, but they will also show their cards sooner than the spectacular but hyper-concentrated 2019s.