The Charming 2015 Chinons from Domaine Bernard Baudry!
11/29/17 -
Thanksgiving may be over, but the arrival of the 2015 Chinons from Domaine Bernard Baudry is really somethng to be thankful for! When tasting with the Baudrys in January of 2016, then again last January, I have to confess to preferring the remarkably balanced 2014s, a vintage that will obviously cellar beautifully. Tasting the 2015s in bottle, however, shows them to be exuberantly delicious for early consumption and with enough structure and acidity to age nicely as well. In fact, the Baudrys are making some of the most consistently delicious wines in France through great organic farming, natural vinifications that are matched to each parcel, minimal extraction and appropriate aging in vats or used barrels that brings out the best in each wine. We are fortunate to have enjoyed the Baudry's Chinons since 1989 and we encourage you to try their beautiful 2015s!
An overview of the 2015 vintage, from the Baudrys: "The Great Charmer: 2015 was the hottest year in Chinon in the past 50 years. The season started well with a good flowering and grape set in the spring followed by a hot and quite dry summer. The grapes developed in beautiful conditions and were concentrated by the dryness of the summer. The generous rains in September served to revive the vegetaton and nourish the grapes. We feared then that the grapes would be damaged by the rain, but the winds from the east at the end of Septemeber conserved the fruit in a superb, healthy condition, offering a much appreciated quantity after a few years of low yields. 2015 is a generous vintage thanks to the volume of wine produced, quite superior to the previous three vintages, but equally a generous vintage in that the aromas are expressed with beautiful intensity. The lighter cuvées are very "gourmande" and perfectly balanced for drinking young. The wines from the slopes, and the parcels with more clay, are equally quite forward but with beautiful concentration and an astonshing aromatic complexity in their youth. 2015 is a real "breath of fresh air" thanks to the volume produced and to the general quality of the wines."
Despite the relatively forward nature of the 2015 vintage - for those who like to cellar their Chinon - we expect the "Cuvée Domaine" and "Les Grézeaux" to age well for ten to fifteen years and the "Clos Guillot" and especially "la Croix Boissée" to age a bit longer. Also, despite the generosity of the vintage, international demand for these wines has increased, unfortunately resulting in decreased allocations for all - so don't delay! (Gardeners Please Note: When dining with the Baudrys, Bernard's wife Henriette served a dish of "crapaudines," the oldest known beet variety. It was incredibly delicious! They're not easy to grow but the seeds can be purchased on-line - give them a try!)
- David Lillie
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