2005 Chablis Vaudésir Grand Cru

Bernard Billaud was eager to discuss global warming and the changing climate of Chablis. And he clearly did not agree with the opinion that global warming was a net positive for Chablis. "Now we have a more violent climate," he said, "and extremes are never good for the vines. And nowadays we have to be very precise about picking dates, as the vines pass into surmaturite very quickly, as they did in both 2005 and 2006." My chance to see the 2006s here was limited, as the grand crus were in full malo and a few wines-or components of wines-were being racked. This domain continues to be one of my favorite sources for precise, minerally Chablis raised in stainless steel. Billaud described 2005 as "a year of pleasure and generosity." Two thousand six was a hotter year, he went on, yielding riper grapes with similar acidity levels. The new vintage produced pinker grapes and an element of noble rot, he added, "but although the fruit was very ripe, there's also good minerality underneath."(Langdon-Shiverick, Los Angeles, CA) Previously recommended: 2005 Petit Chablis (87), 2005 Chablis (89), 2005 Chablis Les Vaillons (90), 2005 Chablis Mont de Milieu (90), 2005 Chablis Fourchaume (90+?).

Bernard Billaud was not alone among his Chablis colleagues in describing 2005 as a vintage with "remarkable richness of fruit." The wines, he said, have a bigger structure, and more ripeness, than the 2004s. Potential alcohols were 12.5% and higher (the finished grand crus are between 12.8% and 13%), and the wines were not chaptalized. "This vintage is like 2002 but with more fruit," he summarized. Acidity levels were roughly equal to those of the 2004s, in the range of 3.8 to 4.2 grams per liter. Billaud describes the earlier set of wines as "classy and classic, with suprisingly enveloping fat." Several of the 2005s were on their finings and were scheduled to be bottled a few days after my mid-September visit.