Séchet is a Premier Cru vineyard located on the chalky Kimmeridgian limestone of Chablis; The 2019 vintage from Domaine Vincent Dauvissat is a beautiful white wine made exclusively from Chardonnay grapes.
That year, yields were average across the Chablis region, but in Premier and Grand Crus they were even lower than the village average, which is reflected in the wine's concentration. The alcohol content is 13%.
The growing season was drier, hotter, and sunnier than usual in Chablis, and because there were two periods of extreme heat, ripening was uneven. Nevertheless, the wine turned out to be markedly mineral-driven. It is precisely this combination of ripe fruit flavors and solid chalky soil that makes the 2019 vintage from this region so intriguing.
Dauvissat's Séchet is not a wine that reveals its true character immediately. It retains its dense structure for many years, and aged bottles require a long decanting period for the aromas to fully develop. Patience is key.
Serve at 10-12 °C. It pairs well with shellfish, fatty fish, and pork, and holds its own alongside Brie and a cheese platter.
Robert Parker (94)
The 2019 Chablis 1er Cru Séchet opens in the glass with scents of citrus oil, white flowers, beeswax, oyster shell, wet chalk and mandarin. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and strikingly intense, it's taut and chiseled, with tangy acids and huge reserves of concentration, concluding with a pungently chalky finish. As I've written before, Séchet—where Dauvissat owns a 0.8-hectare parcel—is located in the Vaillons Valley, but its windier situation and soils richer in active limestone mean it's typically more tensile and incisive than the other climats that make up Vaillons.
Jasper Morris (91)
More pale yellow than lime. An opulent perfumed ripe peach nose. You might expect a more ample mouthful afterwards, but it finishes dry, Sécher can’t help itself. The aromatics are a little different compared to other years, the structure remains the same. Good length.
