2020 Aligoté

Label: Phillippe Chavy
Vintage: 2020
Fruit: Aligoté
Region: Burgundy, France
ABV: 13%

custard cream / champagne mango / lovers who drink the sea 

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Philippe, who is a cousin of Alain and Jean-Louis, runs his domaine of 6ha – less than it used to be after some leases expired – from most unprepossessing-looking premises, a long shed that looks as if it would be more at home in a light industrial  zone. So I was not expecting too much when I tasted there for the first time in February 2021. I was mistaken!

Philippe’s first vinification was in 1990, taken over entirely from his father in 2002. He is not organic but has included a number of biodynamic methods. Yields are low, and in 2020 for the first time the wines were vinified without sulphur. The grapes are pressed without crushing or settling or subsequent lees-stirring. They are fermented and matured in barrels, typically 30 percent new wood, but kept for up to ten years. They are then racked to tanks, neither fined nor filtered and finally bottled by hand. Altogether these techniques are a fascinating mix of some modern ideas with old classic principles. The results are excellent. 

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Please note, all orders come with chips!