Lately, it's been impossible not to take notice of Roches Neuves.

In recent vintages, they have simply been killing it.

Today, I'm very happy to revisit their 2015 Clos de l'Echelier Blanc. When we first offered the 2015 in February 2017, it stood out as one of the vintage's best expressions of Chenin Blanc. If anything, the wine's success has come into clearer focus today.

Regardless of vintage, L'Echelier is one of the standout expressions of Chenin. There's a unique haunting perfume, a lifted brightness and an energetic minerality to the wine.

Clos de l’Echelier is a 1.8ha clos (a walled vineyard). The majority is planted with Cabernet Franc. The small amount that's planted with Chenin Blanc is sourced from 60-year-old vines. The total production is just two oval casks and comes to somewhere around 1,200 bottles per vintage.

The clos is on hard limestone soils. L'Echelier shows a deeply complex and ultra-finessed minerality with bright and floral tinged citrus notes and stone fruits. The persistence, elegance and clarity make clear that this is a special vineyard in the hands of a thoughtful winemaker.

Roches Neuves produced a gorgeous cast of 2015s. They picked on the early side and the resulting wines have a beautiful poise and agility along with plenty of intensity.

The l’Échelier Blanc is always the most incisively mineral of Roches Neuves' whites and the 2015 makes that obvious. There's a pointed, tensile minerality coupled with a grandeur. Many people taste Roches Neuves and reference Burgundy. In this case, we're definitely in Corton-Charlemagne territory.

The 2015 is simply dazzling. The wine is just now offering a glimpse of how it will evolve. There's much promise. We suggest picking up a 4-pack to watch it evolve for a decade or more.

To order, email offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.

Joe Salamone

Wine Buyer
Crush Wine & Spirits