Bernard Defaix Chablis 1er Cru Côte de Lechet 2023

Name: Bernard Defaix Chablis 1er Cru Côte de Lechet 2023
Brand: Avanelle [AVA]
SKU: SF-W-AVA-`CNS2327`-100926-6
Price: 49.99 USD
Availability: InStock

$49⁹⁹

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Bernard Defaix owns more of Côte de Léchet than anyone else, and this Premier Cru shows why the family bet so heavily on the slope. It's a steep hillside on the left bank of the Serein, just above the village of Milly. The soils are shallow, rocky Kimmeridgian marl that force the roots deep, and when the family planted some of their plots they dug up perfectly preserved fossils of Exogyra virgula, an extinct oyster. Brothers Didier (in the vines) and Sylvain (in the cellar) run the estate with Didier's wife Hélène. It has been certified organic since 2009, and no herbicides go on these 20-to-45-year-old vines. 2023 was kind to them: a mild winter and late budburst let the vines escape frost, and the family calls it a generous, gourmand year. Don't take that to mean this is an easygoing Chablis right now. It's tightly wound and mineral in its youth, and the family says this cuvée fills out with age and picks up gunflint notes. Buy a few, open one with something rich, and let the rest wait.

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Burghound

93 points

"Here too the wood treatment is agreeably subtle if perceptible on the ripe and layered aromas of citrus confit, poached pear, shellfish and a hint of wet stone. Here too there is excellent volume to the beautifully textured medium-bodied flavors that flash evident power and minerality on the sappy, saline and dry finale that is sneaky long. This is also well-worth considering."

Antonio Galloni

90 points

"The 2023 Chablis Côte de Léchet 1er Cru has a clean, precise, very focused nose with a seductive marine aroma. The palate is very well balanced with a fine bead of acidity. It's slightly reductive in style, with good weight and a powerful finish. Give this a couple of years just to shake off that reduction because I like its nascent energy. Tasted blind at the BIVB offices in Chablis." —Neal Martin

More about

Wine Details

Grape Variety

Chardonnay
Vintage

2023
Size

750ml
Farming Practice

Organic
Style

Crisp
Sweetness

Dry
Body

Medium Bodied

Flatiron's Take

From the Importer

Tasting Notes & Food Pairings

Perfect Pairings

Sole meunière; halibut or turbot in beurre blanc; roast chicken with a morel cream sauce; mushroom or seafood risotto; scallops seared in brown butter.

Tasting Profile

Dry Chardonnay with strong minerality and a tight, austere edge in its youth, so give it time. The 2023 vintage gave the domaine's whites balance, a generous, rounder palate and layered aromas. With age, the family says this cuvée becomes powerful and complex and develops gunflint-like mineral notes.