Varietal
100% Chardonnay.
Tasting notes
Pale gold colour.
Discreet nose, still a little closed, with slightly smoked mineral notes, hawthorn and toasted almond aromas.
The mouth is very complex with delicate white fruits aromas and almond flavour. A very pleasant iodinated finish.
Food and wine pairing
Perfect with salmon or soft spicy poultry.
Serving suggestions
Serve ideally at a temperature of 14°C. (57°F.).
Ageing potential
4 to 6 years.
Origin
34 hectares are classified under the Premier Cru Fourchaume appellation.
Located in the commune of La Chapelle- Vaulpelteigne, just to the north of the hillside containing all of the Grands Crus, this is a jewel among the Premiers Crus. Due to its international reputation, the wines from the subparcels is often sold under the Fourchaume name. In fact, Fourchaume is one of the "Climats porte drapeau" (flag-bearer climates) grouping together those of L'Homme Mort, Vaulorent, Côte de Fontenay and Vaupulent.
The slope is regular with south-western exposure, and is located in the valley of Fontenay-près-Chablis to the northeast of Chablis. Gentle slopes overlying Kimmeridgian marls.
Vinification and maturing
- pneumatic pressing
- cold static settling of the juice
- alcoholic fermentation began in stainless steel tanks after 3 days, 25% of the juice was transferred to fine-grained 1 to 2-year-old barrels where it continued alcoholic fermentation with weekly stirring the remaining juice was fermented in stainless steel tanks for 7 to 10 days under controlled temperatures (18 to 20°C) in order to preserve as much fruit as possible
- 100% malolactic fermentation
- aged on fine lees for 10 months
Vintage : 2015
The vintage started in the aftermath of an uneven winter, rather mild at the beginning, then very tough in the end. Therefore, the first bud breaks were long in coming as they were observed by mid-April. The spring rapidly boomed with mild temperatures which enhanced the vegetation growth. The first flowers showed up at the beginning of June and the early flowering took place under the best auspices, on average 10 days before the last 10 years. In July, the very high temperatures triggered hydric constraints in some situations. Consequently, bunch closure occurred even though the berries weren’t big enough. At the end of July, the drought symptoms were more and more frequent on the leaves and the growth development was slowed. The onset of ripening occurred on the first half of August with temperatures 2°C higher than the normal. This climatic conditions sourced a very comfortable health status for the vines and a quick maturing. Unfortunately, a violent storm with hail took place in the Chablisien on the night of September the 1st constraining the vine growers to harvest the damaged plots. However, the heat of the last weeks of September allowed the vine growers to obtain highly qualitative musts. The last grapes were pressed on September 21st and the entire crop was particularly balanced and promising.