Today, we are once again the lucky beneficiaries of Guy Robin’s foresight: Back in the 1960s, he assembled a spectacular collection of vineyard plots in Chablis, including parcels in five Grand Crus and four Premier Crus. Later, he resisted the urge to replant those vineyards with higher-yielding clones of Chardonnay (as many others did), and now his daughter, Marie-Ange Robin, is blessed with perhaps the richest trove of old vines in the region.
Today’s 2017 from the legendary “Montée de Tonnerre” Premier Cru is a profound expression of nearly 60-year-old heirloom vines—a Premier Cru with the depth and dimension of a Grand Cru, which shouldn’t be surprising given that (a) this is Robin we’re talking about and (b) this vineyard begins right where the famed row of Chablis Grand Crus ends, and is acclaimed for regularly transcending its Premier Cru designation. Combine a generous vintage in 2017 with Robin’s characteristically generous house style (including barrel fermentation), and the result is a high-impact Chablis that could fool some into thinking they had a Puligny-Montrachet on their hands. And all this can be had for just $45. This, in a nutshell, is why the Guy Robin wines have become house favorites at SommSelect, from the top to the bottom of the lineup.
Guy Robin’s shrewd vineyard acquisitions included significant stands of ‘pre-phylloxera’ vines—i.e., vineyards that were not destroyed during the phylloxera epidemic of the late-1800s. The phylloxera louse (a root-eating aphid) devastated the European wine industry, forcing vignerons to graft vines onto phylloxera-resistant American rootstocks, but it wasn’t a total annihilation. Some pockets of Europe were spared, including parts of Chablis: A good 80% of Robin’s modern-day vines are on their “own,” pre-phylloxera roots. When Marie-Ange left a career as a fine art dealer in Paris to return to the family estate, she initiated more sustainable farming practices, injecting new life into vines that in many cases are 80+ years old. Since taking the reins of the estate in the early 2000s, she has initiated more natural farming practices in the estate’s vineyards and cleaner winemaking in the cellar. This is unquestionably an estate on a hot streak, as our many Robin offers in the last two years demonstrate!
Montée Tonnerre is, in many experts’ minds, an ‘honorary’ Grand Cru—or, at the very least, as close as Premier Cru get to that top tier. The site picks up where the famed row of Grand Crus leaves off, sharing similar expositions (the “Blanchots” Grand Cru is literally across the street). Montée de Tonnerre wraps around a hillside and is traditionally broken up into three sections, or lieu-dits: “Pied d’Aloup” (at the top of the slope, facing east); “Chapelot” (more south-facing); and “Côte de Brechain” (the western slopes). Not surprisingly, the Robins have vineyard holdings in all three sections, and blend the fruit together to offer a panoramic view of this iconic vineyard.
As in 2016, spring frosts reduced the eventual crop in Chablis, although the overall reduction was smaller in ’17. In both cases, what made it through to harvest did so with flying colors—in fact, the ’17 harvest was relatively early, with ripe, healthy grapes producing wines that are enjoyable young. Robin’s 2017 from Montée de Tonnerre is at once textured and laser-focused; they are known for barrel-fermenting their upper-tier wines, and while those barrels are mostly used there’s an extra textural gear in the Robin wines from the top to the bottom of their long lineup. In the glass, today’s wine is a deep yellow-gold with platinum reflections, with heady aromas of yellow apple, white peach, citrus peel, fresh cream, crushed oyster shells, and wet stones. It is medium-plus in body, with considerable energy and power—luxurious enough, in fact, to potentially fool you into thinking it’s from the Côte de Beaune. With 30-45 minutes in a decanter, this will knock your socks off now, but I wouldn’t hesitate to lay it down for 10+ years as well. At this price, of course, you can afford to do both! Pair this with poached chicken breasts for a sneakily rich and satisfying meal. This is truly a value that cannot be beat!
