We emerged at Tonnere and were greeted by our hostess for the day, Nathalie Fevre. She whisked us off in her black Audi 4x4 to Fontenay-pres-Chablis, while a paper bag containing something that smelled rather nice slid about precariously on the back shelf. A few minutes later, we arrived at the winery of Domaine Fevre and were taken through to a very swish tasting room complete with bar stools, all very airy and light.
Then Nathalie gave us a tour of the winery, which contained many gleaming stainless steel tanks. Everything was modern and immaculate, quite a contrast to tastings in the Cote d'Or where there are usually cobwebs, gravel and earth all over the place.This was a big operation - the winery was like a small factory, and they employ 15 people. It's a far cry from the much smaller domaines down south. Nathalie used to work at La Chablisienne and she is the wine-maker here, while her husband Gilles takes care of the vineyards.
My French wasn't good enough for me to understand everything she was telling us but ACC gave me the edited highlights and it appeared that some of the tanks are horizontal instead of vertical, allowing the gunk (that's a technical term) to sink to the bottom more effectively. Nathalie's enthusiasm for experimentation to find the best ways of doing things reminded me of Anne Parent, and indeed they are in the same group of female wine-makers, Femmes et Vins de Bourgogne. They seem to be a pretty fabulous bunch, judging from that website.
Then it was time for a tasting of the various Chablis (is that the plural of Chablis?) made at the domaine. We tasted 8 wines altogether. The youngest one we tried was the Chablis 2012 which was bottled at the beginning of July. I thought this was very classic, with a good finish and good minerality, and it demanded to be drunk with fish. The 2012 vintage seems to be very promising indeed.
Then it was on to three premier crus from 2011 - Fourchaume, Mont de Milieu, and Vaulorent. The Mont de Milieu and the Vaulorent both have 15% aged in oak, while the Fourchaume is 100% stainless steel. I found I preferred the richness of the oaked wines. The Vaulorent was particularly serious and in my notes I described it as "posh". It comes in a big, light-resistant bottle and looks the part.
Next, we tried two premier crus from 2010 - the Mont de Milieu and the Vaulorent. These were both wonderful. Having just tasted the 2011s, it was clear how these wines which were a year older were more knitted together, and they were both sensational. For me, the Vaulorent had the edge but I loved them both. Subsequently ACC mentioned that he still had stocks of the 2008, so I've just succumbed.
Then we tasted a Chablis grand cru les Preuses 2010. This vineyard is next to Vaulorent - by now we were poring over the map to see the location of the various vineyards. It was even bigger and richer, but needed time. In some ways it was more mellow and softer, and G detected a spot of honey.
Nathalie disappeared briefly at this point and came back with a basket - a little aperitif, she said - containing about five million gougeres. It had been these in the paper bag making the car smell so nice. Could the day get any better? We dived in. There were so many that even with my limitless appetite for gougeres we barely scratched the surface.
Finally, we tried the Chablis grand cru les Preuses 2009. This was lovely. It had come together and was already drinking now, since 2009 didn't have as much acidity as the other vintages.
Then it was time for lunch. Nathalie very kindly took us to a restaurant in Chablis, Hostellerie des Clos. It was a hard life! The food here was excellent and beautifully presented, and to accompany it we drank some of her own 2008 Vaulorent while discussing a wide range of wine-related topics. We got the impression that Nathalie was well-known and quite a VIP at the restaurant, and although we didn't look at the wine list, I'd be confident some of her wines are on it. It seems that they recently lost their Michelin star but I can't think why, as this was up there, and I'd love to go back and perhaps stay there some time, as it's a hotel too.
Afterwards, she asked if we would like a tour of the vineyards. We had plenty of time before our train, so readily agreed. There followed a great adventure as we soon found ourselves off-road, on what can only be described as a rollercoaster ride hurtling up and down steep hills along rough tracks. From time to time we stopped and got out to have a look at the grapes on the vines.
At one point Nathalie was telling us about the soil. A large part of the minerally, pure character of Chablis comes from the limestone soil which is high in marine fossils. She literally bent down and scrabbled in the soil and produced some fossils which she told us were moules! I managed to drop mine while faffing about with my camera, but G kept his and here is a photo of it with my hand next to it to give an indication of scale. It's now sitting on my bookshelf as a souvenir of this amazing day.
Down south in the main part of Burgundy, we had the impression that the grapes were nowhere near ready and that the harvest would be towards the end of October, but here in Chablis, they were all set, and indeed started last week.
Afterwards, Nathalie dropped us back off in Tonnere where we did a spot of shopping for our supper and hung out by the station watching the school kids being collected, before catching our train back to Beaune. What a brilliant day. Thanks very much to Nathalie for her hospitality and time, and to ACC for taking us along with him to join in the fun. I learned a lot about Chablis and will certainly be looking out for the 2012s when they are released. With remarkable timing, the Burgundy Portfolio has just published an offer on some of the wines from this domaine which can be found here.
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