Wine Advisor
Raveneau, Chablis Grand Cru Valmur 2013
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2013 Chablis Grand Cru Valmur has an extremely well defined bouquet with what feels like more precision than the Blanchots. Here, there is a touch of generosity with almond and even a very slight creme brûlée scent. The palate is very well balanced, more vivacious and charming than the curmudgeonly Blanchots with a sensual, caressing and lightly spiced finish that is just very...Valmur. This is superb.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2013 Chablis 1er Cru Butteaux has a sensual nose with subtle hazelnut, smoke and almost resinous scents, verging on Riesling scents, that are beautifully defined. The palate is fresh and vibrant on the entry with pleasing, mouth-watering salinity, easing back toward the finish with Granny Smith apples and a healthy dash of lemongrass. I can imagine this changing a lot in bottle – it comes across as a mercurial Chablis Butteaux.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2013 Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos has a very precise and commanding bouquet with intense citrus fruit and mineralité - hints of orange blossom and a daring touch of licorice developing with aeration. The palate is fresh and vibrant, quite steely on the entrance but fanning out wonderfully toward the citric finish. Perhaps like last year, it is the Valmur that really shines at the moment and might be Raveneau's wine of the vintage.
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.
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Package Size
1 x 75cl2 x 75cl3 x 75cl
