2003 Daniel-Etienne Defaix Chablis 1er Cru Vaillon

Daniel-Etienne Defaix owns one of the oldest estates in Chablis. The Defaix family has been winemakers from father to son for 4 centuries. The family estate is located on the oldest terroirs of Chablis, where monks on Pontigny made a selection a thousand years ago. The privileged exposure of the Pontigny monks was and still is a hill with a high slope facing south-east. An advantage for Chablis, which often suffers from frost in spring, and this privileged spot is the first to receive the sun's rays and therefore much less crop losses. Daniel-Etienne Defaix is the undisputed master of 'long-aged-chablis' There is no rush and they firmly believe that the wines must mature and this also testifies that they only release their Premier Crus after around 8 years but we have drunk performances from 30 years and older and these were even more than fantastic. These long-aged chablis from old years can also be ordered by us on request and of course we also have some of ours in our range. What makes this domain so unique, however, is not only the fact that no wood is used during the production process. The unique fruit of the old vines of the vineyards and time do their job and make all execution gems.

We bought this 2003 1er Cru Vaillon again in 2023 from the immense library of old vintages from the cellars of Daniel-Etienne Defaix. This Vaillons Premier Cru in particular can age fantastically. The soil of the old chardonnay premier cru vineyard is very old and lies on a very poor soil of lime and marl and some iron ore and has an exposure to the southeast. As 'Master of the Long Elevage', Daniel-Etienne Defaix gives everything its time and that is especially true for his Premier Crus, which are often only released after an average of 8-12 years, etc. The wine is often still a baby. The alcoholic fermentation with natural yeast at 18 °C lasts about 3 weeks. The wine then matures for at least 18 months with monthly stirring of fine lees and then remains in tanks for at least 10 years before being bottled

The fruity and spicy terroir of the Vaillon Premier Cru vineyard slowly emerges with some swirls in the glass, but then the power of the wine awakens with buttered brioche, mirabelle accents and candied apple. The Daniel-Etienne Defaix Chablis 1 Series Cru Vaillon has further aromas of citrus, beeswax, fresh peach and dried white flowers on the nose, followed by a medium to full-bodied mouthfeel with an abundant and satiny palate with lively acidity and a broad, expansive mouthfeel. aftertaste.

ABOUT CHABLIS

Millions of years ago, the area around the current town of Chablis was covered with sea. In the Jurassic era, the sediment-enriched clay of the Chablis region began to form, and it is this clay that gives the Chablis wine its unique elegance, freshness and complexity. Until the nineteenth century, the vineyards occupied a larger area around the small town of Chablis, on the river Serein, about halfway between Dijon and Paris. But the region fell victim to a phylloxera epidemic that damaged most of the vineyards. However, terroir in Chablis did not change. The cultivated hectares decreased significantly (from about 100,000 hectares in the whole department at the end of the 19th century to 10,000 hectares today in the Chablis region), but the soil, the climate and the expertise of the winemakers did not.

Chablis wines are classified as follows:

- Grand Cru , the cream of the crop. These come from vineyards north of the town of Chablis, on a steep south-facing slope. On the Route de Tonnere, from the intersection with the D91 to the intersection with Rue Blanchot, it is about a mile (less than two kilometers). Here, ranging in altitude from 135 to 220 meters, you will find the best vineyards of Chablis: Bougros, Les Preuses, Vaudésir, Grenquilles, Valmur, Les Clos and Blanchot.

- Premier Cru , excellent wines from vineyards grown on conveniently located slopes scattered throughout the area. Vau Ligneau, Vau de Vey and Côte de Léchet are narrow strips of land on steep east-facing slopes west of the village of Milly; Vosgros is a comma-shaped, west-facing vineyard on the northern part of a hill called Paradis, at an elevation of 590 to 689 feet (180 to 210 meters).

- Chablis, the appellation given to good but not great wines that still benefit from the Chablis terroir. The vineyards involved are often less steep or not as well oriented compared to the vineyards that produce better valued wines.

- Petit Chablis , wines that earn the Chablis name but lag behind others from the region because they are made from grapes grown on less than ideal soil or north-facing slopes. (The word "petit," meaning "little," is a quality designation of sorts, as if "Petit Chablis" were the little brother of larger Chablis wines.)