2014 Daniel-Etienne Defaix Chablis 1er Cru Vaillon

Daniel-Etienne Defaix owns one of the oldest estates in Chablis. For four centuries, the Defaix family has been winemakers from father to son. The family estate is situated on the oldest terroirs of Chablis, where monks at Pontigny made their selection a thousand years ago. The privileged location of the Pontigny monks was, and still is, a hill with a high, southeast-facing slope. An advantage for Chablis, which often suffers from spring frosts, and this privileged location catches the sun's rays first, resulting in significantly fewer harvest losses. Daniel-Etienne Defaix is the undisputed master of "long-aged Chablis." There's no rush, and they firmly believe in the need for their wines to mature. This is evidenced by the fact that they only release their Premier Crus after around 8-12 years, but we've tasted wines 30 years and older, and they were even more than fantastic. These long-aged Chablis from older vintages are also available upon request, and we naturally have some of our own in our selection. However, what makes this estate so unique isn't just the fact that no wood is used in the production process. The unique fruit from the old vines and time do their work, making every wine a true gem.

The Daniel-Etienne Defaix Chablis 1er Cru Vaillon was only released after 11 years of maturation and won't be bottled until 2025. The soil of the old Chardonnay Premier Cru vineyard is very old and lies on very poor soils of limestone, marl, and some iron ore, and faces southeast. As "Master of the Long Elevage," Daniel-Etienne Defaix gives everything its time, especially his Premier Crus, which are often only released after an average of 8-12 years, leaving the wine often still a baby. Alcoholic fermentation with natural yeast at 18°C takes approximately 3 weeks. The wine then matures for at least 18 months with monthly stirring of the fine lees and then remains in tanks for at least 10 years before bottling.

The fruity and spicy notes of the Vaillon Premier Cru vineyard's terroir emerge slowly with a swirl in the glass, before the wine's power awakens with buttered brioche, mirabelle plum notes, and candied apple. The Daniel-Etienne Defaix Chablis 1er Cru Vaillon also offers 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 featuring lively acidity and a broad, extended finish.

ABOUT CHABLIS

Millions of years ago, the area around the present-day town of Chablis was covered by the sea. During the Jurassic period, the sediment-enriched clay of the Chablis region began to form, and it is this clay that gives Chablis wine its unique elegance, freshness, and complexity. Until the nineteenth century, the vineyards occupied a larger area around the town of Chablis, on the Serein River, about halfway between Dijon and Paris. But the region fell victim to a phylloxera epidemic that damaged most of the vineyards. However, the terroir in Chablis remained unchanged. While the cultivated hectares decreased significantly (from approximately 100,000 hectares in the entire department at the end of the 19th century to 10,000 hectares in the Chablis region today), the soil, climate, and expertise of the winemakers remained unchanged.

Chablis wines are classified as follows:

Grand Cru , the crème de la crème. These come from vineyards north of the town of Chablis, on a steep, south-facing slope. On the Route de Tonnere, it's about a mile (less than two kilometers) from the intersection with the D91 to the intersection with Rue Blanchot. Here, at altitudes ranging from 135 to 220 meters, you'll find Chablis's finest vineyards: Bougros, Les Preuses, Vaudésir, Grenquilles, Valmur, Les Clos, and Blanchot.

Premier Cru , excellent wines from vineyards cultivated on favorably situated slopes throughout the region. 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 side of a hill called Paradis, at an elevation of 590 to 689 feet (180 to 210 meters).

Chablis, the designation given to good but not exceptional wines that still benefit from the Chablis terroir. The vineyards involved are often less steep or not as well-oriented compared to those that produce more highly regarded wines.

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