Mel often refers to leesyness in her tasting notes for Chablis and Sancerre/Pouilly Fume. I always wondered what she meant and then as if by magic an answer appeared. ' Some people confuse lees with minerality ' said Mel.

I wonder who she meant



That said, if the distinctive flavour of Chablis/Sancerre comes from the lees and not the limestone, chalk and flint then why do the French bang on about their terroir and let's face it bang on they do.

And why if it's all about the lees can nobody outside of Chablis and Sancerre replicate the flavour of these leesy places. I mean, any winemaker can age their wines on their lees but they never taste like Chablis or Sancerre.

I say these French wines get their distinctive flavour from the terroir and not the lees.

Mel knows nothing*

G ~*Andy Grey & Richard Keys(c)~

One could also argue that the lees got its distinctive flavour from the terroir.

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Yep, Im still here.

I thought of that. But Mel definitely said people were confusing minerality with lees which implies that one has no connection with the other.

If the lees were simply enhancing the wine's minerality then it wouldn't matter whether you described a classic Chablis as being leesy or minerally as both would be correct.

Hmmnnn .................

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Duncan

Except - For a chablis the accepted definitions for minerality are more usually described as flint / chalk and wet granite curb stones - wet pavements. May be we dump stereo type definition - No, they'd think we were off our trolleys.

**No, I don't believe you could **. Could you ? Much of the appeal on a leesy element in flavour, could be defined as slightly wheaty for me.....this is grain, rather than grainy ! as in fiborous, and more akin to timber.
I have very similar probs with pith, sometimes I believe that some of the pith on the finish is to do with terroir. Having said that, the nicest grain in Europe for flavour is grown on rolling limestone or chalk hills.
If a farmer grew grain on heavy fennland, he'd probably feed it to cattle, as it would probably have a more boggy and earthy flavour, it would be soft, and unsuitable.

Do you think we could do with our master / mistress of the subject having a go at defining the two and then separating them from terroir ?

Discuss .... We just shouldn't mess about with definition. Everyone's receptors are very slightly different. What brings opinion together, is enough extraordinary similarities in a wine that make it very attractive to a few connoisseurs

Grey and Keys....smug and sorry after jibe

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Duncan