Wine Advisor
Raveneau, Chablis Grand Cru Blanchots 2020
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2020 Chablis Blanchots Grand Cru is very intense on the nose, revealing hints of wild fennel and spice with aeration and then turning more floral with pressed white flowers. The palate is well balanced, intense and edgy, delivering outstanding mineralité and lip-smacking salinity toward the persistent finish. This has a skip in its step and a compelling sense of coiled-up energy.
Reviewed by: William Kelley
The 2020 Chablis Grand Cru Blanchot is a broad, enveloping wine, wafting from the glass with aromas of orange oil, apricot, freshly baked bread, green apple, pastry cream and petrol. Full-bodied, rich and concentrated, it's satiny and layered, with lively acids, terrific depth at the core and a long, sapid finish.
About the Producer
Domaine Raveneau is Chablis's finest producer. Jean Raveneau has 7 hectares of vines and produces beautifully crafted wines from three Grands Crus (Blanchot, les Clos and Valmur and four Premiers Crus (Montée de Tonnerres, les Vaillons, Butteaux and Chapelot) All the grapes are hand harvested (one of the very few remaining growers in Chablis to do so) and Jean Marie prefers to pick early rather than late, with the aim of preserving the grapes' acidities. The grapes are fermented in stainless steel vats and the wine are then aged in large oak feuilletes (the barrels have an average age of 7-8 years) for 18 months. Very low yields allied to meticulous wine making techniques are what make these wines so highly prized. They are renowned for their pure, racy minerality and rich, honeyed fruit, as well as for their ageworthiness - it would be a pity not to let them have the five to ten years in the cellar that they need to reach their sublime best.
