2012 Chablis Valmur
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Tasting notes
This wine was tasted blind at the Burgundy 2012 tasting in Beaune. The 2012 Chablis Grand Cru Valmur from Domaine Raveneau has a very candied bouquet with hints of Seville orange marmalade and white fennel, adding intrigue to the mineral-rich, citric fruit. The palate is beautifully balanced with a generous opening - plenty of bright citric fruit with veins of walnut lending it an almost Meursault-like personality. There is good length, and a sense of confidence and ambition about this Chablis Grand Cru that may warrant an even higher score down the line.
Critic scores
Average Score
Neal Martin
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
More reviews and scores
Precision, nuance and translucence - not qualities typically associated with this site - are the signatures in Raveneau's 2012 Chablis Valmur. This is a decidedly understated Valmur built on restraint and a total sense of polish. The silky, resonant finish is utterly beautiful. The Valmur is another of the 2012s here that appears to be holding back much of its personality. I imagine it will offer thrilling drinking over the next two decades.
Bright, pale yellow. Explosive, ripe aromas of grapefruit peel and white flowers, plus a primary whiff of banana that quickly dissipated. Rich, sweet and deep but with terrific cut and delicacy for the vintage, not to mention inner-mouth tension. Really superb subtle flavor intensity here from steady ripening without any extremes of weather (these vines are protected from the hottest sun of the day by their north/south axis). Finishes broad but precise, with sweet floral and citrus notes and a strong element of wet stone.
Intense layers of chalk, ash, smoke, graphite all come to life in the glass, supporting seemingly endless layers of fruit as the 2012 Chablis Valmur shows off its drop-dead gorgeous personality. An utterly magical wine, the 2012 Valmur dazzles from start to finish. Deep, rich, impeccably pure, but also wonderfully nuanced, the 2012 simply has it all. What a wine!