2016 Domaine Laroche Chablis Les Clos Grand Cru

The 2016 Chablis Les Clos Grand Cru comes from the bottom and mid-slope part of the vineyard and is aged 100% in used demi-muids . It is blessed with one of my favourite bouquets from Laroche this year: beautifully entwined scents of white flower, oyster shell and gunflint, touches of wet granite and struck flint coming through with aeration. The palate is very well balanced with crisp acidity, the wood exquisitely enmeshed with the fruit and delivering a wonderful, precise, slightly nutty, smoky finish. Superb!

The 2016 Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos from Domaine Laroche plays its cards very close to its vest, only unwinding with extended aeration to reveal a pretty bouquet of crisp white peach, lemon oil and citrus blossom. On the palate, the wine is medium to full-bodied, glossy and delicately textural, with a deep, stony core and vibrant acids, concluding with a stony, almost saline finish. This is a Les Clos that's going to insist on several years' patience, but it's pure, discreetly concentrated and well-balanced, so I wouldn't bet against it.

Yoghurt, mint, apple – much more interesting than their Blanchots. Gorgeous mixed-peel character on the palate with a long, layered finish giving loads of chalky flavour as well as pure, succulent apple fruit. (RH)