Mont de Milieu

The Pinson family has nearly five hectares here and consequently this is something of a flagship wine. With 10 percent of the cuvée fermented in new oak, there is more spice here, but the class of the wine ensures it is not dominant. There is a piercing mineral core and immense concentration; a real star of the vintage. Drink 2022-2030.

It’s mixed news this year: while 2017 sees the return of the much-loved Cuvée Mademoiselle, overall there is less wine than in 2016, frost damage having cut the crop by anything up to 70 percent, with the worst-affected area being Les Clos. Despite the obvious disappointment of the small crop, Laurent and Charlène were delighted with the quality and health of the grapes at harvest, and feel this is a classically Chablisien vintage.

Twenty-five percent barrel-fermented with a fine, clear colour, this is a beautifully perfumed wine with some peach notes, even strawberry. This alluring, sensual character continues throughout the whole wine. It’s very lovely and should be attractive early. Drink 2017-2020.
Jasper Morris MW, Wine Buyer

We visited Benoît Droin towards the end of the 2015 harvest. “If you had seen me a week ago, straight after the hail, I was on the point of committing suicide, but actually things have turned out much better than we feared,” he told us. Yields were of course affected in several vineyards but the wines across the board are extremely fine. The proportion of wood used reflects the style rather than the seniority of each cuvée.

Mont-de-Milieu is the Pinson family’s largest holding of the Premiers Crus and consequently something of a flagship wine. The nose shows a little of its oak élevage at present, along with subtle wafts of noble reduction. There is a wonderful concentration of fruit, beautifully intertwined with cool, marine notes. A harmonious wine with great finesse and elegance. Drink 2020-2026.
Adam Bruntlett, Wine Buyer

The legendary Louis Pinson himself retired in 1983, having made some fabulous oldstyle Chablis. His great-grand-daughter, Charlène, along with her father Laurent and her uncle Christophe are now in charge. There is a Rue Pinson in Chablis, dating back to an earlier generation when three Pinson brothers lived in identical houses on the street. Everything is hand-harvested, with sorting of the grapes both in the vineyard and at the winery. The wines are wild-fermented, mostly in stainless steel tanks, before barrel ageing, with the proportion of oak depending on the cuvée. Despite describing 2016 as a testing year, Laurent Pinson and his daughter Charlène are upbeat, declaring themselves very happy with the quality of the grapes and resultant wines. Volumes are down in many cases, and the limited-production Cuvée Mademoiselle has not been made this year.

2010 is a cracking chablis vintage, a step above even the much acclaimed, rich 2009 and crisp 2008 vintages. Indeed, Laurent Pinson, who made this classy, superior premier cru the flagship of its ilk in his stable, thinks 2010 will be the longest lasting of the trio, as do I. So either enjoy the tart, zingy, intense minerally, fruit of this fantastic, steelyy chablis now, partly matured in barrel and partly in stainless steel, with fresh crab,  or a dozen oysters. Or preferably, put it away until 2015 for the acidity to soften and the wine to flesh out, yielding a richer, fatter, more verdant but still mouthwatering chablis experience.
(Jane MacQuitty - 50 Best Whites For Winter - (The Times - 24-Nov-2012)

The flagship wine of the Pinson Premiers Crus this has much more density of fruit on the palate but you have to wait for it. There is a touch of yellow fruit up front and a hint of licorice behind, but it is the overall effect of density, harmony and typicity which really counts.
(Jasper Morris MW, Burgundy Director)

Laurent Pinson thinks 2010 will be the longest lasting in the recent succession of successful vintages in Chablis, combining the intensity of 2009 with the invigorating acidity of the previous year. Though volume is down as for everybody, prices remain stable – meaning that this excellent address offers superb value. The Premier and Grand Cru wines are a blend of barrel and stainless steel maturation, though the wood component never dominates the wine.

This is the flagship 1er Cru Pinson vineyard and it has produced a fantastic 2011 which is very complete on the nose, with white peaches and a sense of harmony. It’s dense and concentrated on the palate , with an impressive volume of fruit and the expected excellent length.
Jasper Morris MW, Berrys' Burgundy Director Every year we like these wines, and every year when we try the wines that we bought the year before, we like them even more. Laurent Pinson and his daughter Charlène are doing a wonderful job and producing outstanding Chablis for very reasonable prices. All of the wines are hand harvested and the 1ers Crus are matured in barrel, though without the influence of new wood.

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