2012 Chablis Les Clos Grand Cru

William Fèvre winemaker Didier Seguir describes 2013 as a year with a very difficult flowering that started late, around June 10 and lasted well over a month. Disease pressure was already high, so Seguir chose to open the canopies in July to allow for as much air circulation as possible. Coulure (shatter) was a big issue because of the cool spring and wet summer. August weather was within normal parameters, but rain returned in September, sparking an outbreak of botrytis. Fèvre is always among the first to pick, so it is hardly surprising to see that the harvest here began on September 26. Yields were around 18-20 hectoliters per hectare for the 1er and Grand Crus, dramatically lower than normal because of the poor climactic conditions. Post malo acidities are in the 4 grams per liter range, which is to say lower than 2012 and around the levels of 2011. I tasted all of the 2013s from tank. As a matter of practice, Seguir likes to blend as late as possible. The 2012s, which I tasted from bottle, largely confirm my very positive impressions of the wines from barrel. Stylistically, 2012 is like 2010, but with more power and richness. The combination of textural density and healthy acidities (higher than 2013) makes for wonderfully complete and well-balanced wines across the board.

This estate, which does not use anti-rot sprays, did a lot of leaf-pulling on the morning-sun side of the vines in order to aerate the clusters and get more sun on the fruit, said head winemaker/director Didier Seguier. The harvest started early here, on September 26, then finished up quickly after the rainy weekend of October 5 and 6, after which "everything rotted in 48 hours," according to Seguier. The wines were racked after the malos but were still on their lees in cuve at the time of my visit. Seguier prefers to keep the gas and maintain freshness, and thus he does not do any lees stirring for fear of losing precision and terroir character. The estate is also trying to maintain purity by picking fruit in 13-kilo cases, which prevent the grapes from being crushed. Seguier described the 2013 crop of wines as "a riper, more concentrated version of 2011." The fruit was picked with potential alcohol between 11.5% and 12.5%--"with no surmaturite"--and the wines were lightly chaptalized. Post-malo acidity levels are in the range of 4 to 4.3 grams per liter.Two thousand twelve, Seguier added, is more like 2010 and 2008, with the crus finishing with healthy acidity in the 4.5 gram-per-liter range. "Although our 2012s are rounder than the 2010s due to better ripening and more summer heat, they are still wines for purists," he added. "There's a lot of dry extract in 2012: the wind concentrated the grapes and thickened the skins." Incidentally, Seguier noted that his use of DIAM corks, which thus far are proving to be very effective, has allowed him to slightly reduce the amount of free sulfur at bottling. Unless otherwise noted, all of the wines reviewed below are estate bottlings. Also recommended: 2013 Petit Chablis (86).

William Fevre winemaker Didier Seguier has an unusually broad view of Chablis because he vinifies fruit from just about every important site in the region. In 2012, the April 17 frost was most damaging to precocious 1er and Grand Cru sites, where yields were lowered anywhere from minimally to dramatically. Later ripening sites were spared, but nature chose to be cruel, as the most significant losses impacted many of the finest vineyards. Hail was also an issue. Yields in the most affected sites were just 18-35 hectoliters per hectare the lowest Seguier has seen. The harvest began on September 12 and ended on October 2, a fairly tight window for the estate. Seguier's preference is to pick on the early side, and few of the wines were lightly chaptalized. The malos were late to finish. Seguier reports that the Fevre 2012s have both more acidity and higher sugars than 2010, with the main difference being that in 2012 ripeness was achieved by heat, while 2010 maturation was more gradual and tempered by the winds of the north. I tasted all of the 2012s from tank. Seguier planned to bottle the 1er Crus from September to December and the the Grand Crus shortly thereafter. Readers will have to be selective with the 2011s, as quality is inconsistent throughout the range. Most of the 2011s will drink well early, and in general this is a vintage to drink before either 2010 or 2012.The 2011s ripened in August, when the days are long and the nights are short, as opposed to September, when the longer cooler nights help preserve acidity.

Didier Seguier, as is his habit, picked early in 2012, beginning on September 12, bringing in fruit with potential alcohol ranging from 12% to 13% (the wines were lightly chaptalized). Yields were in the very low 18 to 30 hectoliters-per-hectare range for the grand crus. "The April 21 frost explains the small crop," he told me. "But the early terroirs were much more affected. In the peripheral vineyards we made the normal yields." The alcoholic fermentations went quickly but the malos were late, and some wines had only been racked the week before my visit. According to Seguier, acidity levels in the wines are similar to those of 2010 (around 4.5 grams per liter), and the amount of tartaric acidity is higher than in 2011. "Because of the good acidity, you don't feel the sugar and richness so much," he noted. Seguier told me that he is now using no more than 10% oak to vinify his wines, and no new barrels. Also recommended: 2012 Chablis Champs Royaux (86).