Description
Le Clos de la Meslerie, Vouvray
There are two reasons I didn’t offer Peter Hahn’s 2009 Vouvray as a supplement to this morning’s 2016 release. For one, I want to shine a spotlight on this enchanting, if a little cryptic, single-cuvée producer as much as possible. Secondly, in terms of texture, energy, and style, it’s a vastly different wine that equally deserved a solo feature.
I’m actually quite shocked this stunning back-vintage was still up for grabs, and so were the two others in attendance when I pulled the cork. To my right was a collector of renown, who cursed with absolute delight upon tasting this long-aged 2009 nectar, and to my left was Peter Hahn’s importer, who was captivated by its massive energy and sweet-toned balance. As for me, I was confident this was among the finest decade-plus Vouvray values on the market. For the uninitiated: Le Clos de la Meslerie, a 17th-century “micro-domaine,” crafts a single Vouvray of negligible quantities from a tiny walled vineyard. Each release directly reflects the intricacies of its respective vintage and is only ever influenced by Mother Nature and Father Time. As for 2009, a wine of fantastic richness, unrivaled poise, and tantalizing sweetness was born. If you missed the current 2016 release from this morning, click here to secure some. Otherwise, scroll down to discover the fascinating allure of a rare, 13-year-old, moelleux-style Chenin Blanc.
NOTE: This special back-vintage release is only available as a pre-offer. It will be arriving at our warehouse in 2-3 weeks.
Vines at this gorgeous farmstead have thrived around the estate since the 1600s, but the most historically important moment didn’t occur until the mid-2000s when Peter Hahn took over. He had a single vision: to transform this decrepit property into a one-with-nature, biodiverse, small-production winery. He immediately went to work reviving four hectares of Chenin Blanc that were enclosed by an old stone wall (hence the “clos”) and converting the entire property to Certified Organic with biodynamic principles. His first vintage was 2008.
Every year, these four hectares are painstakingly farmed with natural compost and zero “-cides.” You’ll only find a few hard workers, native grasses, and a plow horse between these rows and come harvest, each cluster of Chenin Blanc is meticulously analyzed and sorted. Only the best of the best make their way to the winery—any imperfect clusters are left to fertilize the earth—so yields are always distressingly low. Within 60 minutes of picking, only the first-run juice is delicately extracted from a decades-old, wood-and-cement hand-crank press. It should be noted that this old-school press can only extract roughly half of what a modern machine press can. This precious, highly limited juice is then gravity-fed into French barriques (mostly neutral, only a touch new) where it undergoes a slow fermentation with ambient, airborne yeasts. Following, it continues aging in these barrels for roughly no less than one year with a steady lees-stirring regimen. It is bottled unfined and rested further in the cellar.
Depending on the vintage, the sweetness of these wines can range from sec to tendre to demi-sec to moelleux, and today’s 2009 is the latter, although the label doesn’t officially state a designation. Moelleux essentially translates to “mellow” or “soft” and is typically reserved for the sweetest wines of the appellation. I’m not calling this a sweet wine though, not even close, despite containing 32 grams/liter. The freshness, deep-cut minerality, and high-toned energy perfectly complement the churning notes of ripe apricot, marmalade, mango peel, Bosc pear, yellow apple, and citrus curd. Notes, I might add, that emerge from a smoky/savory bed of chamomile, lanolin, honeysuckle, crushed rock, and exotic spice. The palate is lush and immensely textured with mouthwatering levels of racy acidity that keep the wine lifted. And, if you allow it, the finish will linger for minutes! It deserves nothing less than serious contemplation, 3-4 nights of slow savoring, and a hunk of delightfully pungent blue cheese or spicy Asian cuisine. I have no doubt that all of the bottles you choose to cellar will last another 10-20 years.
