2018 Chablis Terroir de Chablis

Canadian-born Piuze might be considered an “outsider” by some, yet via his considerable negotiating skills, talent and damn hard work, he had established a loyal following for his wide range of crus that generally focus on the less familiar nook and crannies of Chablis. Chatting at length down in his cellar, he was his usual candid and garrulous self. “The 2019 vintage is low in quantity due to poor flowering, but a good growing season with good skin maturity,” he told me. “For the first time ever, we had the alcohol and had to wait for skin maturity. We picked from 11.6-12.2%. The first grapes we picked were at 13.8% but they are not all like that. We started picking on 14 September, one of the last [growers] to pick. The juice was so dense.” This was a solid portfolio from Piuze, very consistent as we darted from one parcel to another around Chablis from glass to glass. In fact, the only one I was not particularly taken with was his first as yet unnamed sweet wine that he picked in November. I guess his talents can only run so far. Readers should note that I have augmented the 2019 tasting notes with several mature vintages that I tasted in London back in February that Piuze attended himself. I was not particularly taken by a couple of the 2018s and their shortcomings were highlighted by other vintages poured that evening.

The one thing you know for certain at Piuze is that you are going to taste a lot of wines. A native of Canada, Piuze has built an enviable range over the years using the micro-négociant model that is quite common in the Cote d’Or, but much less so in Chablis, of purchasing fruit. I can only imagine how hard that has been in a region that is as insular as Chablis is. The Piuze Chablis are always wines of texture and volume, much of it coming from aging in barrel. This range is littered with 1er and Grand Crus, but often I find almost as much appeal in the “Terroir de…” series of village-level bottlings.