Chavy-Chouet’s Wines Are Now Priced in the Elite Tier at Standard Retail ($150+)
– He Gets Better Every Year
– The Distinct Chavy Style Combines Density, Fruit, Minerality and Acidic Balance to Keep Freshness
– I Still Buy Them Direct and They Are Great Values for the Quality
The Style
– Among the Most Delicious Whites in Burgundy
– Tremendous Fruit Concentration and Intensity
– Brilliantly Mineral and Balanced With Top Notch Finesse
– Romaric is Using Less and Less Oak
– So Saline as Well Now
– Top 20 Producer of Whites in Burgundy
– The Wines Should Be Much More Expensive
– 2016 Was The “Breakthrough” Vintage/Everything Since Then Is Elite
2022 Chavy-Chouet Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru “Champs Gains”
– Utterly Sick and Profound
– Nose: Honeysuckle, White Flowers
– Acacia
– A Bed of Minerals
– Impossibly Complex
– What Great White Burg Is About
– Palate – Insane Depth
– Great Mineralic Juiciness
– Trademark Chavy-Chouet Balance
– In 5-8 Years This Will Make Grown Men & Women Cry
– Brilliantly Made from Magnificent Terroir
– 92 Points BH (2020)
Though the mills of God grind slowly; Yet they grind exceeding small
translated into English by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
The point of this proverb is that justice / divine retribution may not look like it is happening, because God takes his time, but in the end, there will be retribution. God just takes his time. And while we mere mortals may not see what we are doing in the slices of time that we pay attention to, God is doing is work, perhaps more slowly than we can recognize.
I sort of feel the same way about the progress at Chavy Chouet. I drink the wines every year and even I may not recognize progress from year to year. But every 3-4 years or so, I’m like, “wow, the wines are a lot better than they were 3-4 years ago.” And this has happened with remarkable regularity.
We’ve been working together since the 2013 vintage and now he is in phase 3 of his evolution and I have no doubt there will be a phase 4.
Phase 1 – 2013/2014/2015
Phase 2 – 2016/2017/2018/2019
Phase 3 – 2020/2021/2022
Phase 4 – ?????
I had a wonderful visit with Romaric Chavy Chouet this past July and he is at the top of the white Burgundy hierarchy these days. The level of improvement he has showed since 16 is remarkable but I think 20/21/22 are all on another level and in 22, he has really upped his game and is maybe a top 6-8 estate in all of the Cote de Beaune for whites. The level of precision and nimbleness is remarkable. The purity is better than it has ever been and the depth is deep ocean as I like to say.
The 2022 Vintage
His 22s are just electric and have that acid and mineral spine that all white Burgundy lovers crave. But they also have gorgeous dramatic fruit and according to Romaric, more freshness and acidity than his 20s and 19s. It’s a clone of 2014 and is similar climatically. They anticipated harvest early and managed to capture the acidity that white Burgundy lovers crave. Romaric says it’s his best vintage and his evolution as a winemaker is so damn impressive. The 22s here are remarkable. The contrast between freshness and the beautiful fruit of the vintage along with that salinity and purity is awe inspiring. The wines are the purest and most refined Romaric has made yet with unreal energy. These wines are so engaging and sadly they are allocated in 2022.
Today is the 2022 Chavy-Chouet Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru “Champs Gains” for $129.99 a bottle on a 3-pack. This is his best wine from Puligny and always fantastic. Sadly, I only have 24 bottles. Demand for Romaric’s wines continues to increase as his star rises
The nose screams honeysuckle, white flowers and acacia on a bed of minerals. It starts out tight for about 5-7 minutes but then it just expands like a peacock’s tail. Once this gets going oh man, and it does get going, it becomes just impossibly complex. It’s so mineral and there are hints of ocean breeze and a super saline element. River stones and citrus work their way in as do apple and pear. Just stunning. Like speechless stunning. What great white burg is about. It is so pungently aromatically thrilling and pure like rainwater with smooth river rocks in it.
The palate is just a beast. There is power, depth, concentration and the mineralic juiciness is on another level. There is fruit but more will come in 4-6 years time. The balance and lingering quality are insane as are the inner mouth aromas. It just explodes initially and then it spreads and pumps acid, fruit and mineral for what seems like forever. A stunning Champs Gain. What spine, poise and structure.
The finish only really begins when you think it finishes. It’s ultra concentrated and ultra refined at the same time. This is one of those wines that is almost a contradiction in terms. Fresh, aromatic and balanced and etherial yet somehow deep, powerful and concentrated. You don’t see many wines like this at this level. In 5-8 years this will make grown men cry.
Champs Gains is right in the heart of Puligny and is above La Folatieres, which Romaric also owns, and below La Garenne. It is chalky grey soil and drains very well. My favorite Puligny from Chavy-Chouet and a superstar in 2022
“This too is quite floral in character with its cooler aromas of green apple, just sliced citrus and a spicy top note. There is excellent punch to the delicious and appealingly textured middle weight flavors that exude a subtle minerality on the beautifully well-detailed, clean and dry finale. This well-made effort is sufficiently firm to require up to a decade of keeping.” – 92 Points, Burghound (2020)
Midjourney
As you know, we believe that strict recitations of tasting notes is only part of the story of a wine. We’ve always tried to include metaphors to try to give our readers a better understanding of how wines impact us. These metaphors have included architecture, painting, music and poetry.
We’re trying something new to help create visual metaphors using Midjourney, a generative artificial intelligence program that is by far the best image gneratour out there. I’ve messed around with a bunch and this is by far the best. We look forward to hearing your feedback.
Please visit my new Tasting Notes Blog on all wines that I have sold through Fass Selections. It is constantly updated.
Please call Cheryl at 949 378 5251 after emailing with your firstorder if you are a first time customer (we prefer not to receive credit card numbers over E-Mail).
OFFICE HOURS 4-7 PM
I love drinking and selecting wines – but my passion for teaching people about wine is almost as big. I’m happy to announce a block of time each day where people can call me just to chat about wine in general. These blocks are NOT intended to sell wine (I do that all day). This is to talk to me about wine pairings or great producers or how long to age wines or styles of wine making or the latest wine controversy. My goal is to help people learn more about wine and enjoy it more. Call me at 917-912-4355 from 4-7EST Monday – Friday.
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