Droin’s 2007 Chablis Mont de Milieu – from land he rents, with 20% aged in older barrels – smells of white peach and hedge flowers; fills the mouth with subtle creaminess yet plenty of refreshment as well as striking delicacy; and finishes with persistently juicy peach, bitter-sweet floral perfume, and hints of citrus zest and tart black fruits. The pronounced phenolics that characterize this vintage chez Droin are here adroitly integrated for an invigorating and gripping memory, and I would expect this to prove versatile and delicious for at least 4-5 years. In striking contrast with the experience of most of his colleagues, Benoit Droin’s 2007s were very slow to begin – much less complete – their malolactic transformations. Droin believes in the potential of machine harvesting in a majority of his vineyards, even in a year with hail, and the bottled results once again point up the foolishness of glib generalizations such as abound on that particular subject. That said, the potential weak spot in some of his 2007s – perhaps due to much-reduced yields, perhaps to hail per se, and a feature to which some tasters will certainly be more sensitive than others – is their tendency toward bitterness. These wines weighed-in in the low 13s natural alcohol, a bit higher than the vintage norm. Importer: Eric Solomon Selections, Charlotte, NC; tel. (704) 358-1565