Under the Radar: Etienne Boileau Chablis

By: Chiara Shannon | Head Sommelier - K&L Personal Sommelier Service

K&L Redwood City tasters were were treated to a delightful "French Connection" tasting last Friday with importer Gregory Condes. A K&L Alum, Condes sure has earned his stripes since his days on the Redwood City sales floor (check out his bio here). He launched his own import and distribution company last year--Gregory Condes Wines--focusing on small producers from California, France and Italy. Needless to say, his collection features a tightly edited group of seriously good wines that express a clear sense of place. They are wines that, as Condes likes to say, "speak for themselves."

Most of Condes' wines are sold primarily to high profile restaurants; in many cases K&L is the exclusive retailer. Saavy K&L shoppers are well-advised to seek these wines out; whether you shop online or in-store, wines like this pair of Chablis from Etienne Boileau (pictured) offer Michelin-Star quality at a fraction of the tab.

2008 Etienne Boileau Chablis ($19.99)  "This comes from about 20 year old vines, and is all done in stainless steel tank to preserve freshness. Etienne has gotten together with two other small producers to share a wine-making facilitity, in order to be able to afford teh best equipment possible. This has a nice snap, as is characteristic of the vintage, with minerality on the finish. Nice Chabis at a nice price." -Keith Wollenberg, K&L Burgundy Buyer

 2008 Etienne Boileau Chablis, Premier Cru Vosgros ($29.99) 90 BH. "This seldom-seen 1er Cru is in the commune of Chichee, East of the town of Chablis, on the south side of the river Surein. There is little cala in the soil here, but lots of small pebbles. It is a relatively cold site, but faces South, on three sides of a samll valley, so produces wines of drive and energy. This has energy, minerality, lots of presence and terrific length and minerality on the finish, the hallmark of the vintage." -Keith Wollnberg, K&L Burgundy Buyer

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