Robert Parker's Wine Advocate 31/08/2011 The 2009 Chablis Les Clos is inward, cool and impeccably precise. It presents a chiseled, sculpted expression of fruit, then blossoms on the mid-palate and finish as the voice of the year comes through. The 2009 is a relatively open, radiant Les Clos that should offer rewarding drinking fairly early for this cuvee. It is drop-dead gorgeous from start to finish. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2029. Vincent Dauvissat’s 2010 harvest started on September 21st, a few days earlier than his average over the last ten years, which has been closer to September 25th. The vintage is marked by very low yields. Couleur and millerandage were most pronounced in the grand crus, where yields were 40% lower than normal. At the same time, the wines have retained plenty of acidity, making for very interesting personalities across the range. The 2010s were aged in oak (roughly 10% new), on their fine lees, and racked once after the malos, which were finished by the end of January. The Forest, Preuses and Clos saw some new oak during the alcoholic fermentation. Dauvissat planned to begin bottling the 2010s in October or November, 2011. In 2009, Dauvissat harvested a week earlier, starting on September 14. Vintage 2009 was marked by a hot August that resulted in ripe wines with acidities that are lower than normal. Within the context of Chablis, where acidity is rarely lacking, a warm yet well-balanced season can be a good thing in that the wines are easier to drink when young, which certainly appears to be the case here. ()

The 2009 Chablis Les Clos is inward, cool and impeccably precise. It presents a chiseled, sculpted expression of fruit, then blossoms on the mid-palate and finish as the voice of the year comes through. The 2009 is a relatively open, radiant Les Clos that should offer rewarding drinking fairly early for this cuvée. It is drop-dead gorgeous from start to finish.

Pale lemon-yellow. Shy nose shows strong wet stone minerality lifted by a lavender topnote. Wonderfully ripe but quite backward; in a massive and muscular style for Clos. The powerful lemon, grapefruit and stone flavors saturate the palate on the very long back end, but this very closed wine will need a good seven or eight years to express itself. Like the Forest and the Preuses, this wine clearly expresses its terroir in spite of the strong vintage signature.

The 2009 Chablis Les Clos Grand Cru has a pungent nose with hints of menthol, lemon verbena and honeysuckle, which are aromatics that grab you by the collar. There's a very faint, almost Brie-like aroma in the background, but nothing disturbing. The palate has plenty of personality with an engaging sharpness and linearity. You might suppose it derives from a much cooler growing season. Long and tender on the finish. Excellent. Tasted blind at the Wallace brother's Xmas bash.

An overtly floral and distinctly cool nose features subtle spice and mineral reduction aromas that are followed by rich, powerful and broad-scaled yet quite finely detailed and pure flavors that are underpinned by a firm acid spine and an intensely citrus-infused finish. Even though 2009 in general is not a great terroir vintage, this could not be mistaken for anything but great Chablis.