Strategy in Burgundy 2018: Chablis
For years running, Chablis has been battling Mother Nature. She is a furious enemy, as ever, and newly re-ignited by climate change.
I visit Chablis every year, seeing 40 to 50 producers to review every new vintage. I admire the region's tenacity in the face of vintage vagaries, especially some impressively dramatic recent ones. No doubt that science, experimentation and rising regional wealth (compared to the 80s and many, many decades prior) have helped Chablisiens endure some of the sour recent years. Yet, it seems there is rarely a rest for Chablis, a region that - despite climate change, which is indeed obvious there - remains marginal in climate and subject to increasingly common weather assaults.
So, what about 2018 Chablis? First, there's a lot of it. Second, the excellent, the good and the "meh" abound. Winemakers had a lot to contend with in the vineyards as well as in the cellars, making making the sundry results unsurprising.
Fear not. If you know your budget (and do be aware in advance of the impacts the Trump administration's implemented and pending tariffs) and have a sense of your style preferences, and you'll do just fine. Here's nitty-gritty on what went down and why it is necessary to carefully navigate the resulting wines.
2018 Weather in Chablis
Calendar year 2018 began with promise. The first quarter was wet and warm. In particular, the deluge of 204 mm of January rain followed by another 98 mm in March prepared the vineyards for the furnace to follow.
The 2018 vintage was the hottest growing season of the now not-so-new century, until 2019 arrived. Moreover, there was more sunshine from May through harvest, with the Yonne department receiving 14% more sun than usual. By the time 35 mm of rain arrived in early August, the vines were desperate.
For once there were few "climatic accidents", as the French like to call them, like frost and hail. Still, many producers were prepared. Where preparation mercifully proved unnecessary, positivity dwelled for more than the obvious reason. Richard Rotiers of Domaine des Malandes was pleased that his hail nets helped cool the vines.
Other than the need for more growing season precipitation, it was a fairly easy year. The result was an abundant crop.
2018 Yields in Chablis
After two short vintages (producers generally were down 65% in 2016 and 30% in 2017), Chablis had no qualms in taking advantage of their VCI, or Volume Complémentaire Individuel, a program by which producers set aside stock from a new vintage to use the next year if the following vintage is short. The idea is smooth out production levels over time.
Michel Laroche of Domaine d'Henri said, "It's a vintage you see twice in a century. Not only were lots of clusters, the clusters were large." Romain Collet of Domaine Collet said that his grandmother told him that he would make a vintage like 2018 only once in his life. Even high quality producers who had never used VCI did so and for good reason.
It is critical to understand that large harvests can be very good. Fine wine thinkers have been subjected to far too much propaganda that a tiny crop is the only possibly best crop. For perspective, even Vincent Dauvissat used the VCI, having harvested 80 hl/ha on the totality of his domaine. Moreover, he asked for 15 hl of VCI but was allowed only 10. He was not alone in lamenting that excellent wines had to be distilled.
2018 Harvest in Chablis
Given the 30°C days as harvest commenced, Rotiers said, "I was happy to have a harvesting machine. I had to harvest in five days." (Domaine des Malandes has 29 hectares. A machine can do the work of approximately 50 people!)
Picking dates were critical. Domaines Raveneau and Laroche started on August 30th. Some finished well after September 15th. This in a year when Didier Defaix of Domaine Bernard Defaix remarked that ripening was 2-3 times faster than usual by the day during the harvest. Granted, every domaine has different vegetative material, pruning methods, soils, expositions and elevations.
Even with picking dates set, bringing in cool fruit was challenging. Jean-François Bordet of Domaine Séguinot-Bordet may be the first in Chablis to harvest at night, beginning as early at 2 am. As it turned out, temperatures made a difference not only in the vineyards but also in the cellars.
2018 Vinifications in Chablis
Cécilia Trimaille of Domaine Long-Depaquit said that managing bitterness was her biggest challenge. The heat coupled with large yields needing to be harvested quickly meant that picking continued through the warm afternoons. Additionally, many didn't have the equipment to chill such large quantities of grapes in the cellar. Moreover, many cellars were generally warmer, too, due to the outside temperatures.
Charlène and Laurent Pinson of Domaine Pinson said that, "...the bitterness of 2015 came back in 2018." However, they attributed this to the thick grape skins rising from water stress. Stéphane Barras of Domaine Laroche said they performed pumpovers and avoided sulphuring as long as possible to keep bitterness at bay. Samuel Billaud of his eponymous domaine added that bitterness is common in large volume years when grapes are marinating with the skins while waiting to be pressed. Also, sometimes the pressings become harder and faster than usual to push more quickly through the large volumes.
Enhancing freshness was a priority, and it could be achieved in different ways. For example, Eric Stienger of Domaine Louis Moreau skipped oak use on top wines to tighten the mouthfeel.
Another unusual element of 2018 was the length of the alcoholic fermentations. Didier Picq of Domaine Gilbert Picq said two of his cuvées didn't finish until May. One winemaker whose friend who sells viticultural products told him that he'd sold more yeast to restart fermentations than ever before. This clearly worked: there was 15% and even 16% Chablis for sell in the negociant realm. To give this further credence, Marc Cameron at Domaine Servin exclaimed, "Even the verjus was ripe!"
Unusually, though not necessarily negative, many producers said malolactic fermentations began before the end of alcoholic fermentations. Granted, little malic acid remained thanks to the sunshine degrading much of it.
The 2018 Chablis Wines
The stylistic breadth is wide in 2018, though all wines are marked by the sunshine and warmth. The frequent, amaro-like bitterness can offer an attractive pithiness or deliver a disjointed mouthfeel. And, as Benoît Droin of Domaine Jean-Paul et Benoît Droin pointed out, acidification can emphasize bitterness. On the flip side, Bessin pointed out that today's tannic edges should help top wines age well and simply "lift" them down the road.
Droin also noted that the high level of extract in the 2018s can help balance the bitterness. Some have a "chewy" texture like they did in 2015, but the 2018s have more freshness. Christian Moreau called his Grand Crus "more red wines in white wine clothing".
Nonetheless, Séguier pointed out that there is a clear "respect of the hierarchy of the crus". Bessin attributed this to the vines' need to dig deep for water, and Cameron pointed out that Chablis' average vine age is rising. The ability of the old vines to push through the grueling summer showed chez Dampt, for the individual labels of Daniel, Sébastien and Vincent. Their sturdier vieilles vignes produced higher yields than their young vines!
The Dampt brothers, Vincent and Sébastien, also believe that the exceptional fruit health at harvest will allow top wines to evolve well. This is providing that, with double the lees they usually see, producers didn't allow excessive contact. Guillaume Gicqueau-Michel of Domaine Louis Michel agreed on being careful with lees contact and - like the Dampts - noted a high level of proteins, which necessitated fining for stability.
Most producers bottled early to preserve freshness. Many also bottled village et Petit Chablis early because they were out of 2017s.
If you're one to look at the abv on the label, remember that balance isn't just about alcohol. Michel Laroche noted that Petit Chablis alcohols went from 12-12.3% to 14% during harvest. While waiting to be picked, the grapes began dehydrating. However, as in sweet wine production, the acidities concentrated, too.
Buying 2018 Chablis
What are you going to get when you buy a 2018 Chablis? As Seneca, the Roman philosopher, noted, "Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity." Before you go buy 2018 Chablis, do your research first.
The good news is that there is something for everyone. You just need to know which style you prefer before you buy. Are you more of a classic drinker or are you more into new(-ish) (heat) wave wines?
The 2018s offer an insight into Chablis as the producers and vines adjust to dramas of climate change. Not everyone loves the steely, chalky mouthfeel of a "classic" Chablis AOC or the invigorating, lemon-lime freshness of a Petit Chablis. In these two appellations, many 2018 bottlings taste more like Chardonnay than Chablis. At every quality level, you can find wines that taste more "Côte d'Or-ian". But if your preference is something more classic, you're not at a loss. You still can taste the terroir behind the vintage in most Premier and Grand Crus, especially from the top producers.
Despite the volume of the vintage, prices may not waiver as producers understandably try to recover from the vagaries of meager quantities in other recent vintages. The upside is that there are more of the best to go around. Those bottlings have enough tension - through acidity and perhaps even tannin - and flavor concentration plumped with extract to age very nicely.
My Top 10 Chablis Producers in the 2018 Vintage
Domaine François Raveneau (2018 Notes Via Link)
Domaine Guillaume Vrignaud (2018 Notes Via Link)
Domaine Jean-Marc Brocard
Domaine Jean-Paul & Benoît Droin
Domaine Laroche
Domaine Pinson
Domaine Samuel Billaud
Domaine Servin
Domaine Vincent Dauvissat (2018 Notes Via Link)
Domaine William Fèvre
2018 Chablis & Yonne Preview Scores
2018 Chablis & Yonne - Sorted by Producer
2018 Chablis & Yonne - Sorted by Score
**If you're keen to read more about my thoughts on 2018 Burgundy, check out my piece on all Burgundian regions here on Wine-Searcher.