Jean-Marc Brocard Domaine Sainte Claire Chablis Vieilles Vignes, Burgundy, France

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The 2009 Chablis Vieilles Vignes Domaine de Sainte Claire comes across as a touch more steely and reserved than the Boissonneuse bottling, but it, too, is made in a fairly rich style that captures the essence of the year. Juicy yellow stone fruit wraps around the generous finish. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2017. I tasted a wide range of wines at Domaine Brocard with oenologist Nadine Gublin, including the wines of Brocard's other Chablis properties, which are reviewed separately. In 2009, the harvest began in mid-September. The wines were vinified with ambient yeasts in steel and/or oak, depending on the vineyard, and aged on their lees until the malos were finished. The Cote de Lechet, Fourchaume, Bougros, Valmur and Les Clos were fermented and aged in 100-hectoliter conical oak vats. Brocard bottled the 2009s in late 2010 and early 2011. The Brocard wines are generally quite rich and lush in texture relative to most of the other wines in the region. One of the other important characteristics of this lineup is that the most complete, successful bottlings don't always come from the most prestigious sites. I also noted that the house and vintage style marked the 2009s to a greater degree than at many other addresses, while the 2010s show more site specificity. A number of the 2010s were still undergoing malolactic fermentation, so I was only able to taste a selection of the wines from that year. The estate's vineyards are currently being converted to biodynamic farming. It will be interesting to see where the wines go from here. Importer: Martine's Wines, Novato, CA; tel. (415) 883-0400

I have long had a soft spot for Brocard''s Vieilles Vignes, now from 60-65 year old vines. Good firm stony fruit on the nose and on the palate, some weight and texture, from the old vines, balanced with fruit and firm acidity. Good depth and a long finish.