Chavy-Chouet’s Wines Are Now Priced in the Elite Tier at Standard Retail ($100+)
– He’s Still Young and Getting Even Better
– The Distinct Chavy Style Combines Density, Fruit, Minerality and Acidic Balance to Keep Freshness
– 9 Wines from the Terrific 2021 Vintage
– 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 Meursault 1er Cru “Charmes”
– Nose: Coiled Richness and Classic Meursault Nuttiness
– A “Wall of Flavor” Win
– Stunning Fruit and Density
– Acid Balance to Go Toe to Toe with It
– Huge Mineralit
– Incredible Texture
– The Palate Impact Is Incredible
– Remarkable Meursault Power but Great Restraint and Finesse
– A Stunning Bottle of Burgundy
– 93 Points Vinous, (2020) Neal Martin (He’s Very Stingy, So This is 95/96 From Anybody Else)
2022 Chavy Chouet Meursault “Clos des Corvees Le Citeau”
– The Dictionary Definition of Meursault
– Nose: Classic Meursault
– Grilled Nuts
– Smokey Minerals
– Some Green Apple
– Palate: Terrific Concentration and Power
– Opulent Tension
– Astounding Length
– Fruit, Grilled Nuts
– Stunning Richness and Purity
– 92 Points, VINOUS, Neal Martin (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.
The 2022 Chavy Chouet Meursault 1er Cru “Les Charmes” can be had for $129.99 a 3-pack. For me, this is really what Meursault is all about, but in a Fassy way. It’s a Wall of Flavor wine. It is super elite in 2021. Romaric said about the 2021 Charmes, “It is a monster of power and energy. Incredible volume and purity. 50% Austrian Oak.”
The nose has that coiled richness along with classic Meursault nuttiness. Really deep and intense but complex at the same time in a sort of a maelstrom kind of way. It has loads of baking spices, green apple skins, huge clear minerality, like smelling fresh air, gorgeous hint of florals, zero sense of woods unreal purity on this nose. Just world class, super elite and profound. And only better with air. A cornucopia of complexity after 8-9 hours of air.
The palate has powerful Meursault fruit. And it is incredibly dense – that’s the Chavy style. And it is dialed up in 2022. But the fruit is restrained, almost coiled to allow the finesse to shine though. This wine really shows what the Chavy style is – the fruit is massive and dense but the acidic balance is also massive and dense so the wine is powerful, yet balanced and not at all monolithic. It’s that Chavy unobtrusive purity and clarity which takes another step forward in 2022. He is young and getting better with every vintage. The wine is incredibly juicy as great Charmes can be but combines that with lovely complexity, minerality and ripeness as well as real depth of flavor. Zero sense of wood, unreal purity on this, palate is superbly complex, linear with great energy and a sappy intense mineral driven structure. Such a lean Charmes! Love it. That opulence and richness one can get from Charmes is there but man is this chiseled. Gorgeous. Insane complexity already. Chewy and structured and gets richer with air but the chisel stays as is. Another terrific wine from a great site. Romaric is doing incredible work here from terrific vineyards. This, for $129.99 in THIS vintage might be the best elite Meursault 1er value I will ever offer. This is VERY LIMITED. Obviously, this is a bigger wine (it’s Meursault, after all) but it does not go over the top and wallow in its power like some Meursaults can. It’s absolutely chiseled and elegant while being prodigious and powerful.
The 2020 got 93 Points from Neal Martin. Review is below.
“The 2020 Meursault Les Charmes 1er Cru perhaps does not deliver quite the same mineralité or energy as the Les Genevrieres on the nose, maybe a little timid at the moment. The palate is well balanced with a sapid entry, quite saline with hints of oyster shells and fruits de mer towards its composed and persistent finish. Very fine.” 93 Points Vinous, Neal Martin (2020)
The 2022 Chavy Chouet Meursault “Clos des Corvees Le Citeaux” which can be had for as little as $79.99 a bottle a 3-pack is an outrageous deal for the dictionary definition of what a Meursault should be. This wine is so classically Meursault it seems it should be drunk in Flaubert’s France in a way.
Grilled nuts, smokey minerals, some green apple on the gorgeous nose. Just a gorgeous nose of classic Meursault aromas but more on the candied rocks and mineral side with less butter and nuts. After some air, very floral with lovely hint of spice and so pure. Like a stream of Meursault. Just like ’96 but more intense. You can’t get a more classic Meursault if you try.
The palate has terrific concentration and power. So much sap. Stunning richness and purity on the palate. Just explosive with amazing freshness and tension. So long. This had similar energy to the ’19 but seemed more complex, much deeper and more complete. Really really pure. Saying it over and over but the purity of Romaric’s 21 whites is jaw dropping. The aromas in 21 are great. Just like the 14 which I’m sure you are regretting you did not buy more! There is a wealth of fruit, more grilled nuts on the palate and astounding length for a lie dit village wine. The palate impact can be summarized in two words. Opulent tension. This is easily 1er Cru in quality. Insanely complex and rocking intense “I can’t believe how concentrated it is” concentration. So deep. There is an epic Icelandic Viking take quality to this wine. Below is the 92 point Neal Martin (2020) Vinous score.
“The 2020 Meursault Clos des Corvées de Citeau, the monopole of the Domaine, has a very well-defined, you might say Roulot-like bouquet, with yellow plum, quince and light orange pith scents, an underlying stony scent becoming more accentuated with time. The palate is very well balanced with a fine bead of acidity, taut and fresh with a slightly waxy-textured finish, a little more extract here. Excellent.”
92 Points. Vinous, Neal Martin (2020)
The vineyard is one of the earliest ripening plots in Meursault and it can get hot on a lazy mid summer day. The soil is rich in clay and that is why it makes rich, opulent and luscious wines. It’s a bonus that it’s made by one of the most up and coming winemakers in all of the Cote de Beaune. I mean, I think he arrived as soon as I tasted the first wine. He did. Every wine I’ve ever had has been magic and more. I’m lucky to have him.
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).
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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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