2011 Chablis Les Vaillons 1er Cru

Estate manager Matthieu Mangenot describes the 2012s as "opulent and charming wines."In comparison, he told me, the 2011s are "more austere and less open, with perhaps more class."Two thousand eleven, he added, was an early-harvest vintage with the characteristics of a later year."It was necessary to pick quickly at the beginning of September [he started on September 1] because the vegetative cycle was over and acidity levels were starting to fall."Yields here averaged a low 35 hectoliters per hectare in 2012 owing to a bit of frost damage on April 17 and considerable millerandage and coulure during the flowering.In fact, noted Mangenot, the flowering was very uneven and long, lasting from June 8 through 25.Then a month of hot, dry weather beginning in early August even resulted in a blockage of maturity in some sites."We had Clos and some of our Vaucoupin at 13.5% potential alcohol, while our Blanchots was still at 10.5% on the same day.It was a nightmare harvest that required us to pick one morsel at a time."Acidity levels in the post-malo '12s are in the 4.1 to 4.3 grams-per-liter range, compared to 3.85 to 4.0 in the 2011s.Mangenot told me he did less work with the lees than usual in 2012 as the wines did not need more richness.All the wines I tasted at Long-Depaquit in early June were domain bottlings. (Numerous importers, including Albert Bichot USA BNP Distributing Company, www.bnpdist.com; Maddalena Vineyard Brands, Los Angeles, CA)

Estate manager Matthieu Mangenot described the tricky growing season of 2011 in considerable detail.The flowering took place quickly, between May 20 and 25, and there was hydric stress up to the end of June, he told me.A heat spike on June 26 resulted in the loss of some grapes in the estate's grand cru vineyard, and there was a bit of hail 12 days later.But then July and the first half of August were rainy, with less sun than usual, and the maturation of the grapes proceeded slowly."We didn't get high sugars but we had nicely balanced acidity levels," he said.The harvest took place during the first 11 days of September, with potential alcohol levels between 11.2% and 12%.Mangenot noted that he's now using barrels for only five years, vs. ten previously, "to avoid getting weird aromas."Vosges is his forest of choice, as he believes this wood "gives more tension and promotes minerality in the wines."