2006 Chablis Beauroy 1er Cru

Like a number of his colleagues in Chablis, winemaker Didier Seguier describes 2007 as having the freshness of 2004, but with a bit more material-not a bad combination for those who'd like to get the pleasure of Chablis without the pain. "There was more malic acidity than in 2004, but less tartaric," he added. "It's a classic vintage, precise and delineated." The 2007 harvest here began on the early side, as is the habit at William Fevre, with the team bringing in fruit from hailed-on vines first due to the small crop loads, but then stopping for a few days to allow the other parcels to ripen thoroughly. I was particularly impressed by the superb collection of grand crus, which demonstrate terrific acidity and would appear to offer strong aging potential. With the exception of the Petit Chablis, the premier cru Mont de Milieu, and the grand cru Grenouilles, all of the wines I tasted are domain bottlings.

After picking early in 2005, William Fevre got an early jump on the harvest in 2006 as well, beginning three days before the ban de vendange with their holding in Les Preuses and finishing by September 21. Winemaker/director Didier Seguier is obsessed with making classic, minerally Chablis from clean fruit picked with healthy acidity levels. "Our grapes were healthy in 2006, with no botrytis," he told me. Little or no sorting of the fruit was necessary-in contrast to 2005, when hail in July and rain in late August triggered some rot, not to mention high sugar levels. Perhaps for this reason, the '06s tended to finish a bit drier than the earlier set of wines, and Seguier gives the edge to the '06s for their greater purity of aromas and flavors. This was one of the few 2006 sets I saw that showed the green tinge of classic Chablis with firm acidity and minerality. Seguier emphasized that although the domain wines are aged partly in oak, William Fevre purchased just 5 new barrels in '06 (out of a total of 800!). The barrels used here average four to five years old. Unless otherwise noted, I tasted only domain wines. (Henriot, Inc., New York, NY) Previously recommended: 2005 Chablis Domaine (88), 2005 Chablis Beauroy (89), 2005 Chablis Montmains (89), 2005 Chablis Les Lys (89+?), 2005 Chablis Vaillons (88), 2005 Chablis Mont de Milieu (89+?), 2005 Chablis Montee de Tonnerre (92), 2005 Chablis Fourchaume (91), 2005 Chablis Fourchaume "Vignoble de Vaulorent" (92), 2005 Chablis Grenouilles (90), 2005 Chablis Vaudesir (92+?), 2005 Chablis Valmur (93).