Cave Marie-Therese Chappaz Grain Arvine De Fully Legerement Doux 2018 (750ml)

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Producer	Cave Marie-Therese Chappaz
Country	Switzerland
Region	Valais
Varietal	Petite Arvine
Vintage	2018
Sku	41028
Size	750ml

   

WA

97

Marie-Thérèse was not destined to be a winegrower. At the age of 17, her father offered her a vineyard as a gift. She was torn. Marie-Thérèse had dreamed of becoming a midwife and traveling the world. After an internship at the local hospital where she did not appreciate the atmosphere or the hierarchical system, she decided to accept the vineyard on the condition that she alone would tend the vines. She did a one-year viticulture internship at the Biollaz cellar, and then completed the Advanced Course in Viticulture and Oenology at the well-known wine school in Changins. For the next six years she worked in the caves at Changins while caring for her own vines. These formative years lay the foundation for her life as a vigneronne in Valais. While vine growing was a Chappaz family tradition, Marie-Thérèse was the first to estate bottle. 1988 was her first vintage, and 1989 marked the birth of Marie-Thérèse’s daughter Pranvera in July and the founding of the winery in September. She grew the domaine from 1.5 hectares in 1989 to today’s 10 hectares of historic vineyards planted to indigenous and international grapes including Chasselas, Petite Arvine, Pagan, Gamaret, Pinot Blanc, Sylvaner, Hermitage, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Gamay and Pinot Noir.

100% Petite Arvine. Biodynamic farming with a strong emphasis on biodiversity. Plants are only removed the the base of the vines. Otherwise, a variety a plant species coexist with the vines. Assorted tisane are used to care for the vines so they may defend themselves against maladies.

Chappaz's 2018 Grain Arvine de Fully is slightly sweet, but what an amazing, bright and shining wine this is! The bouquet is bright as a sunny winter day in the Valais and is flinty like gun powder intertwined with bright and precise fruit aromas. A bit Condrieu-like, I'd say. This is an entirely terroir-driven wine, and any idea to guess the variety is a bad idea. The palate is lush, intense and concentrated but also pure and piquant. The finish is highly elegant, with perfectly ripe and intense fruit, but there's so much mineral backbone that it finally plays the main role. This is so salty, and any sweetness is just ripe fruit. The finish is enormously long. This is a world-class wine from between the worlds of dry and sweet. Molitor's finest green capsules come to my mind. The finish of this Arvine is enormously long, complex and salty, with great purity, precision and freshness. This can age for decades and challenge any German Rieslings then. 14.9% alcohol plus 12 grams of residual sugar. Tasted in January 2020.  Drink 2020-2050