Producer: Domaine Francois Reveneau
Region: Chablis, Burgundy, France
Varietal: Chardonnay
Year: 2018    

John Gilman, 95+ Points 

"The 2018 Valmur from Domaine Raveneau is outstanding in quality, and quite expressive out of the blocks, as are several other of the wines here in this vintage. The very complex bouquet wafts from the glass in a combination of apple, pear, a touch of tangerine, beeswax, white flowers, chalky undertow and just a bit of vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied, ripe and precise, with a rock solid core of fruit, superb soil signature, a lovely girdle of acidity and outstanding length and grip on the snappy finish. This is an excellent wine in the making, and the only reason I rank it just a whisper behind the other two grand crus in the cellar this year is because it shows just a touch more ripeness in its panoply of fruit aromatics. But, there is absolutely nothing here not to be excited about!" 

Burghound, 95 Points 

"This too is quite restrained with a distinctly cool fruit profile of green fruit and a plethora of classic Chablis elements that include iodine, quinine, oyster shell and smoky mineral reduction. There is excellent volume and power, and particularly so for the 2018 vintage, to the muscular big-bodied flavors that possess fine mid-palate density on the intensely saline-inflected, markedly dry and chiseled finale. This possesses impressive development potential and should age well for years." 

Decanter, 95 Points 

"Despite the south-east exposure of the vineyard, this is never a block buster wine. Such things are unheard of chez Raveneau, after all. It has top notes of hawthorn and white flowers that segue into a subtle, nuanced, elegant palate that’s all about precision and texture rather than obvious fruit flavours, with acidity driving the mid-palate and finish." 

Wine Advocate, 95 Points 

"The 2018 Chablis Grand Cru Valmur is brilliant, unwinding in the glass with notes of crisp green apple, white flowers, fresh bread, iodine and oyster shell. Full-bodied, satiny and concentrated, with chalky extract and tangy acids, it's one of the cooler, more tensile wines in the range and stands out as a particular highlight." 

Jasper Morris, 93-95 Points 

"Pale lemon colour. This starts out surprisingly austerely, without the immediate flesh of many 2018s. There is white fruit, a little bitter almond, medium intensity at first on the palate, then builds to the back. Excellent acidity. This works!" 

Vinous, 93 Points 

"The 2018 Chablis Valmur Grand Cru has a more extrovert bouquet with yellow fruit, grilled walnuts, a touch of oak that will need a couple of years to be subsumed. The palate is well balanced and focused with fine salinity, orange rind and tangerine on the entry, and a tensile and intense finish. Excellent." 

James Suckling, 92-93 Points 

"Aromas of fresh flowers and iodine with oyster shell and lemon zest, as well as more peachy notes. This has a very smooth-honed and concentrated, weighty feel with such fleshy peach and nectarine flavors, making a very sleek and compelling, long impression. Refined, weighty and long finish with yellow fruit and a wash of minerals." 

Alcohol: 13% 

*Discounts do not apply to items like this one in the Fine & Rare category. Price and availability in store may vary.