Domaine Laroche - Chablis St Martin 2018

A vintage that reveals the limestone and the singularity of the terroirs of Chablis. Dress, pale yellow, limpid and brilliant. The nose opens on notes of chalks, flowers white and fresh fruits like the apple. Fermentation’s partly in lightning oak (30 years) bring subtle and complex notes of fresh undergrowth and of cedar. Taste and mineral mouth, long and saline finish.

Saint Martin is a blend of the best plots of Domaine Laroche vineyards in the Chablis appellation. All plots are located on Kimmeridgian limestone soil with a west to northwest orientation. Thanks to the diverse nuances of these sources, they bring richness and complexity to the final cuvée.

Vintage Report: In 2018 the summer conditions were dry with temperatures above seasonal norms (> 98 °F) which favored an advanced veraison of 8 days compared to the previous year. After 2 challenging years with harvest volume down 50%, we are thankful for the abundant and high quality of vintage 2018.

Harvest Date(s): Mid- September

Yields: 54 hectoliters per hectare (4 tons per acre)

Fermentation: 21 days fermentation at 17˚C (62˚F) in stainless steel vats

Malolactic: Yes

Aging: 8 months on fine lees in stainless-steel tanks and “foudres”— large oak casks—of 55hl (8%)

Filtration: Minimum filtration to preserve the maximum natural character of the wine

Grape(s): 100% Chardonnay

Alcohol: 12.5%

Saint Martin, the patron saint of Chablis, was a Roman cavalry officer who became a humble monk and was elected Bishop of Tours. After his death in 397, his body was brought back to the Abbey of Marmoutier in Tours, where his relics (such as his cavalry cape, which he had torn in half for a beggar) were kept. In 877, as the Normans were invading the Touraine, monks took his relics to Chablis to avoid destruction. Saint Martin’s relics were kept for a decade in the Obédiencerie of the ninth-century monastery in the town of Chablis. The Saint Martin cuvée is the flagship wine of Domaine Laroche, a symbol of the Laroche values of sharing and conviviality.