The identification, naming, and, in some cases, classification of great vineyard sites is not the sole preserve of the French, but there’s no doubt they’ve made the most of it. With a lot of great French wine, the place of origin is as much the “brand” as the producer making wine from it, but sometimes the stars align and you get the best of both—an exceptional vineyard site and someone who knows what to do with it.
That’d be the best way to describe today’s Grand Cru Chablis from Domaine Pinson Frères: It’s from the awe-inspiring “Les Clos” Grand Cru vineyard and crafted by a family who’ve farmed this terrain since the 1600s. They know what they’re doing, and it shows, and I can’t think of a better wine to illustrate why sommeliers love Chablis so much. It’s got the layered texture and the profound mineral imprint that distinguishes elite Burgundian Chardonnay from Chardonnay made anywhere else. And yet Pinson’s “Les Clos” costs…what? Come again? That’s why sommeliers love Chablis—because we can actually afford to drink the very best. I suspect you love Chablis for that reason, too, and one sip of this brilliant 2016 will only reinforce that. Do yourself a favor and get some.
The current Pinsons to farm and craft wine in Chablis are Charlène Pinson and her father, Laurent, who draw on a deep family history, to put it mildly (there’s an actual ‘Rue Pinson’ in Chablis, so named for three Pinsons of an earlier generation who all lived on the street). The first bottles with the Pinson name on them appeared in the 1880s, and their vineyard holdings, totaling about 12 hectares, include pieces of six different Premier Crus and a solid 2.5 hectares in Grand Cru Les Clos. As many of you know, Les Clos is the largest and best-known of the seven Grand Crus of Chablis, a 27-hectare parcel on a perfectly pitched, south/southwest-facing slope. That westward tilt exposes vines to afternoon (as well as midday) sun, ensuring optimal ripening of grapes and delivering the boldest, most generous examples of Chablis Grand Cru.
The Pinsons completed renovations of their winery and aging cellars in 2004, and, upon her taking the reins of the estate in 2008, Charlène joined Laurent in striving toward the most sustainable farming regimen possible. They’ve also focused on vinifying each of their parcels individually, employing barrel fermentation and aging in some instances based on the site and the vintage. In the case of this 2016 Les Clos, fruit from 50+-year-old vines was fermented 80% in stainless steel tanks and 20% in barrels, then aged in used barrels for about a year before bottling. Combine this with the perfect ripeness of the 2016 vintage (widely characterized as a small-quantity, excellent-quality year), and you could be tricked into thinking you were drinking something serious from further south in the Côte de Beaune.
And yet, for all its layered lusciousness and hints of ripe stone fruits, there’s still that salty, oyster-shell minerality to root this wine firmly in Grand Cru Chablis. In the glass, it’s a bright yellow-gold extending to the rim, with seductive aromas of yellow apple, salted lemon, citrus pith, some tropical fruits, oyster shells, and hints of baking spices. It is full-bodied (by Chablis standards) and deliciously drinkable now, with a long finish driven by mineral flavors and lifted by refreshing acidity. It’s a voluptuous, lip-smacking Grand Cru Chablis, immensely enjoyable now if given about 45 minutes to unwind in a decanter: Serve it at 50-55 degrees in Burgundy stems to bring outs its aromas a rich texture, and try it alongside something white-sauce-y like
blanquette de veau. Be sure to also hold onto a few bottles for revisiting about 5-7 years from now, when it promises to be a blockbuster. This is really a sneakily amazing deal, so take advantage of it!
