2011 Jean-Paul & Benoit Droin Chablis Grand Cru "Les Clos" (Pre-Arrival)
SKU #1114681
93-95
points
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Something struck me when I tasted Droin’s 2011 Chablis Les Clos. In many ways, Clos encapsulates elements of all the top neighboring sites while retaining an elusive personality that is hard, if not virtually impossible, to peg down. Constantly changing in the class, the 2011 Clos seduces the palate and intellect with endless layers of salt, crushed rocks, apricots, nectarines and ash. The finish is long, intense and utterly impeccable. This is a hugely promising 2011. Anticipated maturity: 2015+. Once again, my tasting with Benoit Droin was one of the highlights of my trip to Chablis.Vintage 2011 was characterized by an early, easy and even flowering, which resulted in a generous crop... Droin doesn’t seem to get a lot of attention in the press, but in my opinion, this is one of the very finest producers in Chablis. I have also had great luck with older bottles, as these are typically wines that age beautifully.
(8/ 2012)
92-94
points
Allen Meadows - Burghound
(50% wood, approximately one-third of which was new). A ripe but still relatively classic nose is composed of smoky mineral reduction, acacia blossom and soft citrus nuances and the citrus character is also reflected by the large-scaled and overtly powerful flavors. There is an intense stoniness to the exceptionally clean, crisp and bone dry finish that delivers outstanding length. This is perhaps the closest to an old school Chablis as there is in the range and I particularly like the oyster shell nuances.
(9/ 2012)
91-93
points
Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar
(50% oak): Yellow-green. Pungent, complex aromas of grapefruit zest, ginger, silex and quinine; resembles the Montee de Tonnerre in its smoky minerality. Large-scaled, ripe and aromatic, with highly nuanced, saline flavors of peppery minerality, herbs and clove. This very young wine finishes with a slightly bitter edge but boasts firm structure and lovely lingering perfume. Very promising.
(7/ 2012)
K&L Notes
Since the year 1620, fourteen generations of the Droin family have passed their winemaking tradition on to the next. Since 1999, all vinification has taken place at a modern wine facility built below the Grand Cru vineyards in Chablis, where they hold more than 4 hectares of vines. Grape clusers are handled very gently before pressing and the wine is matured in vats and neutral oak before bottling almost exactly one year after harvest.
