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Paul Jaboulet Aine Hermitage La Chapelle Blanc 2020 - First Bottle

Technical Details

Blend	Marsanne
Winemaker	Caroline Frey
Country	France
Region	Rhone Valley
Appellation	Hermitage
Vineyard	Maison Blanche Lieu-dit
Alcohol	13.5

Paul Jaboulet Aine Hermitage La Chapelle Blanc 2020

Other Whites | France

JS94, DC94, WA91+

$179.95 $220.00 - 750mL

This is BEYOND rare! Jaboulet’s iconic La Chappelle has produced some of the greatest wines of all time...but this?!?! 100% marsanne, made only in the very best years, is perhaps the rarest La Chappelle of all. A cool $40 OFF the retail makes this a must-have for any Rhone aficionado!

Double 94 POINTS to start, and this beauty is but a wee babe. Hailing from the vineyard known as “Maison Blanche”, situated at the very top of the Hermitage appellation, above the famed white Hermitage lieu-dit, Les Rocoules, this minuscule parcel is fermented entirely in concrete egg vessels. In its youth, expect the wine to be linear, piercing, and incredibly intense, with floral and citrus dominant tones, but air reveals a hint of what time will surely build upon, as layered stone fruit notes, orange cream, gun flint, green tobacco, almonds and surely more to come! A marsanne from a site like this, made in a taut, precise style...well, we’re going to join the critics in recommending patience on opening this. Or some serious, vigorous decanting!

We are seriously shook that we were able to get any...but it is not a lot. Don’t regret that one time when your favorite online wine shop got that uber-rare, utterly collectible bottle, at the BEST PRICE in the U.S.A., and you missed it! Let’s go!

Technical Details

Blend	Marsanne
Winemaker	Caroline Frey
Country	France
Region	Rhone Valley
Appellation	Hermitage
Vineyard	Maison Blanche Lieu-dit
Alcohol	13.5%

About The Producer

Originally founded by Antoine Jaboulet in 1834, the domaine eventually took ownership of the finest appellations of the northern Rhone Valley, including Hermitage and Crozes Hermitage, as well as Saint-Joseph, Cornas and Saint-Peray. The Jaboulet family sold the company to the Frey family in 2006 and Caroline Frey is now at the helm and the wines could not be better.

Reviews

James Suckling
Fresh apricot, pear blossom, lemon verbena, crushed flint, cream and sandalwood on the nose. Full-bodied, yet elegant and fresh, with vibrant acidity and a supple, seamless palate. Mineral, textured finish. From organically grown grapes. Try from 2023.

Decanter
Agreeably fresh nose. Detailed floral notes mingling with tobacco, brioche, subtle spice and bitter orange. Concentrated without a huge body; certainly powerful, but all reined in at present. Quite marked grapefruit bitters on the long, dry finish, with a little tannin. A good vintage of La Chapelle blanc, but give it time. No oak maturation, just concrete eggs now

91+

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2020 Hermitage la Chapelle Blanc (last bottled in 2014) comes entirely from the Maison Blanche lieu-dit and is 100% Marsanne. Like the other Jaboulet whites from 2020, it's on the leaner side, with pear and citrus enriched by some leesy character. Medium-bodied, it's long and elegant, even if it's a significant departure in style from most examples of Hermitage Blanc. With it's higher-than-normal acid levels and crisper feel, it's conceivable that I've underrated it as a young wine and that it will blossom in time.