2014 Albert Bichot Grand Cru Chablis "Les Clos" Domaine Long-Depaquit 750 ml

Stephen Tanzer: The Stingiest and Most Respected Burgundy Critic on the Planet

In 1999, the early days of WineAccess, we struck up a business relationship with wine critic Stephen Tanzer. Just a year later, we converted Tanzer’s print version of the International Wine Cellar to the web, inviting subscribers to search seamlessly through thousands of tasting notes, nearly all written in the cellars where each wine was crafted.

We spent many afternoons with Tanzer at his apartment on the Upper East Side. While most of our conversations began with an open discussion of the future of wine criticism on the web, invariably Steve couldn’t help but blur the lines of business and pleasure, inviting us to taste new releases of red and white Burgundy.

Steve’s knowledge of the producers, villages, and vineyards of Burgundy is unparalleled. Each bottle came with a short treatise on its maker, cellar, and vineyard practices, the vagaries of the vintage at hand. In Meursault, we spoke of battonage (stirring of the lees in barrel) and the 1982 “Charmes” of Comtes Lafon. In Puligny, the conversation shifted towards Etienne Sauzet and Leflaive. In Chassagne-Montrachet, Ramonet’s “Les Ruchottes” and the more open-knit “Les Caillerets” from Jean-Noël Gagnard.

But despite Tanzer’s appreciation for the brioche-like, buttery opulence of the Chardonnays of the Côte de Beaune, we soon came to realize that Steve’s high-acid palate leaned more towards Chablis than Meursault. In the hands of the Chablisien masters, the steep Grand Cru hillsides turned out more tightly wound Chardonnays, often vinified without a preponderance of new wood.

Each of the seven Grand Crus of the appellation are bunched together on a single hillside above town. If “Blanchot” tends to yield the most delicate Chardonnays, and the sun-bathed “Les Preuses” the most full-bodied, it’s the 25-hectare swath of “Les Clos” that gives birth to the most complex and age-worthy Chablis.

The top performers in “Les Clos,” Tanzer argued, often stood tall next to — or even outpointed — the Grand Crus of the Côte de Beaune, despite comparatively modest price tags. In the sensational white Burgundy vintage of 2014, the crème de la crème of Chablis crafted astounding wines from “Les Clos.” As always, François Raveneau ($200) and Vincent Dauvissat ($149) led the charge. Then came William Fèvre ($115). Just a hair behind was the drop-dead Grand Cru BARGAIN of the vintage, the absolutely breathtaking “Les Clos” from Domaine Long-Depaquit.

Bright green-gold. Beautifully restrained and finely delineated aromas of ripe apple, pear, roasted nuts, and orchard pit. Rich, juicy, and dense yet, as Stephen Tanzer noted, “remarkably weightless considering its superb breadth.” Finishes with terrific tension, persistence, and vibrancy. Drink now-2030.

92-95 points from both the stingiest, and most respected Burgundy critic on the planet. Just 200 cases are being shipped stateside, 50 of which are earmarked for our membership. $95 on release. As good as Grand Cru white Burgundy ever gets at $70 — today, ONLY on WineAccess. Shipping included on 3.