Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage Blanc 2014

JS97: White peach, grilled hazelnuts and plenty of yellow citrus fruits with dried meadow flowers. The palate has impressive glycerol-laden texture. Lemon and lime citrus ride on a smooth and expansive mid-palate. Peach and peach skin flavors and a sapid, taut finish. A real masterpiece. Best from 2020.

WA95: Chave continues to make a full-throttle, concentrated and unctuous Hermitage Blanc, and refuses to buy into the ridiculous trend toward making Sauvignon Blanc-like whites from this tiny, magical terroir. God bless him for that and there are few whites I’d rather drink than a mature Hermitage Blanc from this genius winemaker. Jean-Louis called 2014 a good year for the whites, and his 2014 Hermitage Blanc had just been bottled a month prior to my tasting. It has terrific minerality as well as classic stone fruits, buttered citrus, honeysuckle and crushed rock, full-bodied richness and an elegant, fresh, pure style. It will have two decades of longevity.