Chardonnay, Arbois, 2018
The 2018 chardonnay is fresh and juicy, with a vital acidity and savoury tang, thanks to the high elevation and poor marly limestone soils. This cuvée has existed since the launch of Domaine du Pélican, in 2012. The Chardonnay cuvée is made from several different parcels of vineyards located in Arbois and Montigny-les-Arsures. In addition, we now produced two single vineyard Chardonnays (Grand Curoulet and En Barbi, see description below). The vineyards sit mostly on hill tops, over marly soils. Their altitude is the highest of the estate (close to 400m). One vineyard is situated on the West facing slope of the Revermont and is covered with fallen rocks ("éboulis calcaires") of Bajocian limestone. Age of the vines is between 10 and 45 years. The grapes are lightly crushed and then immediately pressed. Fermentation and aging take place in barrels - just under half the 2019 crop in 350 and 500L barrels (of which 10% are in one-year oak) - and foudres.",,
critic reviews
I liked the bottled 2018 Arbois Chardonnay better than the unbottled sample I tasted last time. It's a neatly made Chardonnay with some toasty and spicy notes, a little creamy, nicely textured, more Burgundian that most examples from Jura. The wine is tasty and finished with a salty note, with integrated oak and the signature of a fine winemaking team.
The 2018 Arbois Chardonnay is absolutely delicious. Bright and yet also generous, the Chardonnay captures the richness of this year quite well. Lemon peel, white flowers, mint and light tropical accents all run through this super-expressive, inviting Chardonnay. What a beautiful wine this is. I would open the 2018 in advance to allow a touch of reduction to blow off.