Top scoring Premier Cru Chablis 2019

Premier-Cru-Montee-de-Tonnerre-from-Grand-Cru-Blanchot.jpg — View of Premier Cru Montée de Tonnerre from Grand Cru Blanchot

(Image credit: View of Premier Cru Montée de Tonnerre from Grand Cru Blanchot)

In a vintage shaped by the depth and concentration resulting from lower yields, 2019 in Chablis delivered consistent quality across tiers.

But the differences between each level were also more marked with clear jumps in expressiveness and age-worthiness.

Scroll down for the top scoring Premier Cru Chablis 2019 tasting notes and scores

It’s worth trading up to appreciate the terroir influence that Chablis offers.

Nestled between the very good but yet shy Grand Crus and the approachable Villages and Petit Chablis, the Premier Crus offer a great compromise when it comes to both quality and price.

If the price tags for Grands Crus compete with Premier Cru Puligny and Meursault, Premier Cru Chablis over-delivers compared to village wines from the Côte de Beaune.

See the Chablis 2019 full vintage report and top scoring wines

Of the 100 Premier Cru tasted, just under 70% achieved silver medal status, which equates to 90 points or above.

Best climats

Montée de Tonnerre and Vaulorent live up to their reputation, with a lovely combination of ripe fruit, purity and flinty, mineral notes.

Benoît Droin views these climats, along with Montmains, as ‘very accomplished’ in 2019.

Guillaume Michel favours Montée de Tonnerre, whilst Didier Seguier highlighted Vaulorent’s ‘unique position as the only Premier Cru on the slope of the Grand Cru’.

Vintage comparisons

Chablis has endured some challenging times throughout the past decade.

2016 was devastated by frost and hail, with frost also seriously impacting volumes in 2017. Conversely, 2011 was a year to forget with high volumes and disappointing quality.

2010 and 2014 were great years, with the latter appealing more to Chablis ‘classicists’, and this is the year most revered by producers, despite many wines remaining linear and tight.

It seems that climactic disruptions are now becoming the new norm but Chablis producers are very resourceful and are learning how to cope with hotter, drier years.

2019 is a much more typical Chablis year than the warm vintages of 2006, 2009, 2015 and 2018.

In terms of drinking windows, 2019 Chablis will be approachable when young, but has the concentration and acidity to age well, particularly at Premier and Grand Cru level.

Top scoring Premier Cru Chablis 2019

Chablis 2019: Full vintage report and top scoring wines

Chablis 2019: Top Scoring Grand Cru wines

Identifying the best Burgundy vineyards

Explore More

Andy Howard MW became a Master of Wine in 2011 and runs his own consultancy business, Vinetrades Ltd, which focuses on education, judging, investment and sourcing.

He previously worked for Marks & Spencer as a buyer for over 30 years and was responsible as wine buyer for Burgundy, Bordeaux, Loire, Champagne, Italy, North and South America, South Africa, England, Port and Sherry.

Although his key areas of expertise are Burgundy and Italy, he also has great respect for the wines of South America and South Africa, as well as a keen interest in the wines from South West France

He is a Decanter contributing editor and is the DWWA Regional Chair for Central Italy. Andy also writes a regular column on the UK wine retail trade for JancisRobinson.com.

Top scoring Premier Cru Chablis 2019

Scroll down for the top scoring Premier Cru Chablis 2019 tasting notes and scores