A joint Venture between cousins – President of French wine group Badet Clément, Laurent Delaunay, has teamed up with his winemaker cousin, Dominique Gruhier, to launch a contemporary and international Chablis wine brand – Grand Calcaire to “shake up Chablis”.

The two cousins are both from the fifth generation of the Delaunay family, a renowned family of Burgundy negociants and producers in the Côte de Nuits and Côte de Beaune who have played an important role in the region since 1893.

The wines are made after the pair selected what they believe to be the best plots, often shaded north-facing plots as well as the misty slopes with Kimmeridgian clay limestone marl soil.

It is this typical ‘cool terroir’ character that they sought out to allow them to these minerality rich wines. The name ”Calcaire” refers to the distinctive limestone and this signature chalkiness.

Terroir – Our Fourchaume is made from grapes grown in the coolest plots of this west/south-west facing terroir. The soil here is composed of relatively deep clay-limestone marls from the Kimmeridgian with brown clays and a low pebble content which provide the land with excellent water reserves and drainage properties. The Premier Cru Fourchaume is the flagship for the Chablis Premier Crus. It has a large surface under vine (140 ha) and results in wines that are both generous yet mineral, seductive and complex.

Vinification and ageing – The carefully settled grape juice is transferred to stainless steel vats and 20% oak barrels for a high precision fermentation. The wine is then left in contact with its fine lees for several months and carefully aged with frequent tastings carried out to determine what operations, such as stirring (bâtonnage) or racking, need to be performed. Blending is carried out with the utmost precision to ensure optimum balance in the finished wine.

Beautiful, pale yellow in colour. The nose is highly expressive and sophisticated, offering great complexity. Lovely freshness due to notes of citrus zest, bergamot, Eau de Cologne, clementine and lemon verbena. The palate starts off featuring perfect balance between freshness and restraint , along with pronounced tautness and spring-like notes that are evocative of chlorophyll. The palate is extremely subtle, elegant and sophisticated featuring a mineral nuance of stone and oyster shell complemented by pleasing salinity in addition to a slight hint of refreshing bitterness and a touch of kumquat. Spicy notes (Espelette pepper, pepper) lend this wine its classy, assertive character. This impressively distinguished wine is both complex and airy

James Suckling – 93 points

The complex chalky and Amalfi lemon character of this wine is clear from the nose, then comes the excellent balance of these qualities with the restrained richness and good concentration on the medium-bodied palate. Long, creamy finish with plenty of mineral drive. Drink or hold.