NV Vouette Blanc d'Argile

Gautherot’s (2010 vintage) NV Extra Brut Blanc d’Argile represents young Chardonnay vines (based on cuttings from Selosse and Dauvissat) in Kimmeridgian, and primary fermentation and malo took place in 400-liter barrels. While less multifaceted than the corresponding Pinot-based Fidele, this is only a little less unusual and intriguing. The nose was initially dominated by juniper and arbor vita, possibly prompted in large part by wood. Behind that, however, emerged bittersweet iris perfume, lemon zest, lemon pip, peanut, and eventually Chablis-like suggestions of herbed and salted chicken stock (here especially strong on celery leaf). Almost waxy in feel but with underlying firmness and lemon-tangerine brightness that help assuage its bitter elements, this finishes with impressive if slightly austere persistence. It should prove fascinating to follow for at least several years. Bertrand Gautherot was imbued by (among others) Alsace’s Jean-Pierre Frick with a passion for viticulture in a biodynamic vein, and was convinced by Anselme Selosse to take back from negociant contracts his at the time roughly ten acres of producing vines, a figure that, since Gautherot’s inaugural 2001 vintage, has risen only marginally, even as he has gained a grand reputation among wine lovers, especially those of self-described “natural wine.” The estate is named for its most prominent vineyards, Vouette being on grand cru Chablis-like Kimmeridgian and Sorbee on related Portlandian chalk. Gautherot prides himself on what Germany’s Hans-Gunter Schwarz liked to call “activism in the vineyards; minimalism in the cellar,” and his ambient cask-fermented young wines are never fined, filtered, or cold-stabilized, minimal sulfur being applied solely when the grapes are pressed, as a consequence of which Gautherot – and who am I to disagree – recommends that one enjoy his highly distinctive wines within two years of their disgorgement. Imported by Domaine Select Wine Imports, New York, NY; tel. (212) 279-0799

Vintage 2008. Very pale greenish straw. Lovely intensity on the nose. Beautiful complexity although the acidity is still very marked. Very attractive but very youthful. Piercing and delicate. (JR)

100% Chardonnay from a massale selection of cuttings from Anselme Selosse’s Avize vineyard and a famous Chablis grand cru (the producer name remains anonymous). 2007 vintage, oak aged, disgorged in Jan 2010, no dosage. A pronounced lemon-cream nose, with a touch of herbs. Broad, slightly angular and elbows out, and practically smoking with tension. Lemon-peel layers, chiselled minerality and spartan in restraint and severity. Striking elegance. (TC)