Henri Chauvet, Vie Ordinaire 2023

Producer: Henri Chauvet
Region: Auvergne, France
Grapes: Pinot Noir
Style: Red
Alc.: 13%
Size: 150cl bottle
Notes: MAGNUM From two plots: one large plot on the hillside which has volcanic soil, and a smaller parcel which is a mix of volcanic soil with blue marl. 10 to 12-day wholebunch maceration in stainless steel. Elevage is 12 months; 50% in a relatively new 500L Alsatian foudre, and 50% aged in old 228L barrels. This has some of that classic Pinot spice and more savoury notes, with soft tannins and some light fruit. This has great potential to age.

Producer: Henri Chauvet
Region: Auvergne, France
Grapes: Gamay d’Auvergne, Gamay Beaujolais, Pinot Noir
Style: Red
Alc.: 13.5%
Size: 150cl bottle
Notes: MAGNUM From a plot just outside the village, basalt and broken up limestone. The Pinot Noir was planted by Claude Sauvet who first started the domain from a massale selection from Burgundy. 10-12 days whole bunch maceration in stainless steel. 12 months elevage in 228L barrels. The is the most mineral and taut of the 2023s, and it opens up beautifully over a couple of hours.

Producer: Henri Chauvet
Region: Auvergne, France
Grapes: Gamay d’Auvergne, Gamay Beaujolais
Style: Red
Alc.: 12%
Size: 150cl bottle
Notes: MAGNUM From a co-planted plot of both gamays (and some other gamay varieties). The parcel is dominated by red iron-oxide rich clay with decomposed granite, quartz and a limestone outcrop. 7-day whole bunch maceration in stainless steel. Some free-run juice is drawn off after a few days of fermentation to ‘keep the fruit bright’ in the wine. 9 months elevage in a mix of stainless steel tanks and 228L barrels. There’s a freshness to the fruit, and a definite saltiness, that helps balance the richness from the barrel ageing.

Producer: Henri Chauvet
Region: Auvergne, France
Grapes: Gamay d’Auvergne
Style: Red
Alc.: 13.5%
Size: 150cl bottle
Notes: MAGNUM Made from Chauvet’s best gamay grapes grown on steep slopes in Boudes; basalt-rich soil, mixed with different types of marl (mainly blue). 12-15 days of wholebunch maceration in large wooden vats. 18 months elevage in a mix of old 500L, 300L, and 228L barrels. Such a lovely expression of Auvergnat Gamay; smoke, flinty minerality, warm fruit, all balanced by a delicate touch of old barrels.

Producer: Henri Chauvet
Region: Auvergne, France
Grapes: Pinot Noir
Style: Red
Alc.: 13%
Size: 75cl bottle
Notes: From two plots: one large plot on the hillside which has volcanic soil, and a smaller parcel which is a mix of volcanic soil with blue marl. 10 to 12-day wholebunch maceration in stainless steel. Elevage is 12 months; 50% in a relatively new 500L Alsatian foudre, and 50% aged in old 228L barrels. This has some of that classic Pinot spice and more savoury notes, with soft tannins and some light fruit. This has great potential to age.

Producer: Henri Chauvet
Region: Auvergne, France
Grapes: Gamay d'Auvergne
Style: Red
Alc.: 13%
Size: 75cl bottle
Notes: From a couple of Henri’s prized plots, mainly on basalt and blue marl, the grapes are macerated in whole bunch in large wooden cuves. The wine then spends nine months in 228lt and 300lt barrels. Some of Henri’s characteristic smokiness, the fruit is gentle, this feels bloody and mineral. This has great potential for ageing.

Producer: Henri Chauvet
Region: Auvergne, France
Grapes: Gamay d’Auvergne, Gamay Beaujolais
Style: Red
Alc.: 12%
Size: 75cl bottle
Notes: From a co-planted plot of both gamays (and some other gamay varieties). The parcel is dominated by red iron-oxide rich clay with decomposed granite, quartz and a limestone outcrop. 7-day whole bunch maceration in stainless steel. Some free-run juice is drawn off after a few days of fermentation to ‘keep the fruit bright’ in the wine. 9 months elevage in a mix of stainless steel tanks and 228L barrels. There’s a freshness to the fruit, and a definite saltiness, that helps balance the richness from the barrel ageing.

Producer: Henri Chauvet
Region: Auvergne, France
Grapes: Pinot Noir (Savigny-lès-Beaune, Bourgogne)
Style: Red
Alc.: 12.5%
Size: 75cl bottle
Notes: Henri’s harvest was greatly reduced in 2023, as it will be in 2024, so he and his team harvested from a few other farms to supplement their crop. From an organic domain in Savigny-lès-Beaune. 10-12 days of whole bunch maceration some in a large wooden vat, some in stainless steel. 9 months elevage in 228L barrels. We’d advise opening this a little while before drinking, and once it has some air it is such a delightfully lithe and supple expression of Pinot. Some spice, and sprightly fruit, with a long mineral finish.

Producer: Henri Chauvet
Region: Auvergne, France
Grapes: Gamay d’Auvergne, Gamay Beaujolais, Pinot Noir
Style: Red
Alc.: 13.5%
Size: 75cl bottle
Notes: From a plot just outside the village, basalt and broken up limestone. The Pinot Noir was planted by Claude Sauvet who first started the domain from a massale selection from Burgundy. 10-12 days whole bunch maceration in stainless steel. 12 months elevage in 228L barrels. The is the most mineral and taut of the 2023s, and it opens up beautifully over a couple of hours.

Producer: Henri Chauvet
Region: Auvergne, France
Grapes: Carignan (La Livinière, Languedoc)
Style: Red
Alc.: 14%
Size: 75cl bottle
Notes: Henri and his team harvested from this domain in La Livinière near the Minervois. Old vine Carignan, farmed organically. 3-week whole bunch maceration in stainless steel vats, with some direct press juice. 18 months elevage in 228L barrels. This is so lovely; delicate fruit with a warm burst of sunshine, the tannin and rich but soft.