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Tuesday 31 August 2010

Surely this isn't Chardonnay!

2005 Chardonnay, Les Pénitents, Alphonse Mellot

On Sunday we had a small gathering of friends to mark late August. Among the bottles we put on the table were a couple of the 2005 Chardonnay, vin de pays des Coteaux Charitois, from Alphonse Mellot. We left people to help themselves. I was surprised that several friends remarked that they were taken aback that this was a Chardonnay. Used to big, oaky, blowsy Chardonnays from Australia, Chile etc. they didn't recognise this much fresher style as coming from the same grape variety, which they normally don't like.

2005 was the Mellots first vintage from the Coteaux Charitois having bought the vineyards that year from the consortium that developed the vineyards at Chasnay near La Charité. Initially quite successful the consortium ran into problems with frequent changes of winemaker and slow sales.

Of course it isn't really a surprise that this Chardonnay is very different from rich versions from hotter climes as Chasnay is only 100km from Chablis.      

2 comments:

Luc Charlier said...

You make it VERY difficult for us, Jim.
Alphonse Mellot is one of the popes in Sancerre production.
Incidently, I have spent an entire night at the pub of that village, with the local growers (amongst which one of his kin), discussing the respective merits of local rugby heroes. Rugby, say you, in Sancerre? Well, most of them boys went to college in Bourges, and had a gym teacher who used to be a good player in that town’s team. So, they learned the fundamentals together.
Then you come up with chardonnay, hardly the grape you expect in Sancerre. And good at that, too!
But I see, this ain’t Sancerre at all, you’re talking Charité. I shouldn’t take the Mickey, though, because it would look as if “L’hôpital se moque de la Charité”.
And Charité-sur-Loire, isn’t it ? Sur Loire ? Yes, but the region is .... Burgundy, for sure.
Now, everything gets as clear as crystal water: your excellent chardonnay is in fact a Burgundy, made on the banks of the Loire, by a Sancerre wine-maker!

Jim's Loire said...

Bravo Luc Tu es arrivé.