If you’re a fan of William Fevre Chablis, you might want to try their Chilean wines for a fraction of the price.
William Fevre
Chablis is the cooler, lighter, fresher, and more minerally distant cousin of Burgundy Chardonnay. William Fevre is one of Chablis’ top producers and helped it recover from its decline due to vine diseases and war from the late 19th century to the mid-20th century. Nowadays, Chablis’ production, quality and prices have increased. The style of Chablis also fits current winemaking trends of lighter, fresher and less oaked wines.
William Fevre took over the family estate in 1959 and started purchasing some of the best vineyards in the appellation, including several Premier Cru and Grand Cru vineyards. .
He takes a terroir-driven approach that combines traditional and modern techniques. They use neutral oak to best express each vineyard site and the famous Chablis minerality. They also use organic and sustainable practices.
William Fevre’s project in Chile, founded in 1992, was a partnership with Victor Pino, who let him build a winery on his family farm in the mountains in San Juan de Pirque in Maipo Alto. Soon others in the family, who had a history of mining, came to join the project. Obviously, the style of wines borrow a lot from Fevre’s Burgundy sensibilities.
Now, I know that the company that controls Lafite Rothschild has bought William Fevre’s business in Chablis this year, but I haven’t seen anything about what that means in Chile. Lafite already has Los Vascos in Chile.
Surprisingly, I’ve only tried their reds and their sparkling, which are great bargain wines and fairly ubiquitous in Chile. I figured I needed to try their Chardonnay since that’s what William Fevre is best known for in Europe.
Tasting Notes
2022 William Fevre Espino Reserva Especial Chardonnay Maipo
William Fevre Chile makes Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenere and Chardonnay in Maipo. They even made Maipo Pinot Noir at least for one vintage, but I haven’t seen it recently. Their Espino line Reserva Especial and Gran Cuvee are their entry level wines while they also make higher end Chacai and The Franq Rouge. It looks like they’ve stopped making their higher end Chacai Chardonnay though and only make higher end Cabernet Sauvignon. These are all from Maipo. They also have some wines called Little Quino, sourced from vineyards in Malleco and made from Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc. They also have a traditional method sparkling from Malleco with Pinot and Chardonnay.
The Espino Reserva line only costs $6 in Chile, but is closer to $13 in the US. Only 3,200+ cases were made.
The clones came directly from William Fevre’s vineyards in Burgundy. It sees no oak. Only stainless steel. Little battonage is used to stir the lees.
The nose is pretty and fruit driven. Fresh and ripe white fruit like pears and white peaches with a touch of citrus and minerality. The palate is medium-light bodied with medium+ acidity with upfront fruit and a salty lingering finish. It’s not Chablis with its minerality and often higher acid, but it’s far from oaky, buttery California Chardonnay too. It’s a good Chablis proxy for half the price or less that should pair well with lots of stuff especially seafood, sushi and smoked salmon. Maybe it’s a bit too inoffensive for people who like either end of the spectrum of Chardonnay, but it should work for most people at a price they can afford. Lastly, it’s a safe buy because it’s not always clear what style of Chardonnay you’re going to get in the New World. Here you know William Fevre leans towards Chablis but with perhaps a little more ripeness from a warmer climate. Chile, for example, has several styles of Chardonnay in comparison to Burgundy where the region, appellation and classification can help determine the style. 90