PETIT CHABLIS > BOUCHARD Ainé & Fils

PETIT CHABLIS 2024

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2022 2023 2024

Varietal

100% Chardonnay.

Tasting notes

Colour: Pale golden dress, limpid, and bright.

Bouquet: Elegant aromas of white flowers (acacia), mixed with notes of citrus carried by a mineral and fruity base.

Palate: It is vivid and light, with a well-balanced acidity. The enthusiastic attack is followed by a pleasant roundness. Its full body pairs with its freshness and offers a persistent sensation on the palate.

Food and wine pairing

This wine pairs well with oysters, raw fish, and prawns, small river fish (fried), grilled sardines, and numerous other fish species. It also goes well with tripe sausages (andouillettes) and snails, goat's cheeses and pressed or hard cheeses. Its freshness is the perfect accompaniment to summer salads and aperitifs served with savory puff pastries (gougères).

Serving suggestions

Serve ideally between 12-14°C / 54-57°F.

Ageing potential

This wine can be enjoyed now or kept in the cellar for the next 2 years.

Origins

Village Appellation of the Chablis wine-growing district (dept. of Yonne) in the north of Burgundy. This appellation may be grown in any of the communes within the delimited area of the Chablis wine-growing district.

The vineyards of the Petit-Chablis appellation lie on either side of the River Serein. This AOC was instituted in 1944. It is one of the jewels in the crown of the Chablis district which, lying in the northernmost department of Burgundy, forms the « golden gate » to the region as a whole. A Chardonnay wine through and through, « Petit » Chablis has, in fact, nothing « little » about it.

These carefully selected terroirs occupy the higher portions of the winegrowing slopes or the edge of the plateau. The soils are brown and derived from hard limestones, with patches of sandy silts. Altitudes : mostly between 230 and 280 metres.

Vinification and maturing

Grapes were pressed immediately after the picking, the juice was settled, the fermentation started with the addition of selected yeasts in stainless steel tanks under controlled temperatures (18°C) to preserve as much fruit as possible. In order to get a suppler wine, we let the malolactic fermentation begin 10 days after the alcoholic fermentation; it ended in the end of November. The wine is then aged on partial lees for 4 to 5 months.

Vintage : 2024

The year 2024 in Burgundy was marked by extreme weather conditions, with excessive rainfall and a significant lack of sunshine. These factors led to heavy disease pressure, particularly downy mildew, complicating the work of the winegrowers. Frost and hail also caused significant damage, particularly in regions such as Chablis and Auxerrois.

Yields were severely affected, with drops of up to 70% in some areas. The Côte Chalonnaise held up better, with more limited losses. Overall, volumes are well below the usual average, a reminder of the difficult harvests in 2021.

The late harvest necessitated rigorous sorting to preserve quality. Despite the challenges, the grapes harvested reached good ripeness thanks to a sunny spell in September. The reds stand out for their richness and concentration, comparable to great vintages such as 2010. The elegant whites are reminiscent of 2022.

Initial tastings reveal promising wines, with concentrated aromas and a fine structure. Although limited in quantity, this vintage promises to be a qualitative success.