Screwcap. Defaix’s impressive village Chablis is drawn from four parcels of mature, 30-plus-year-old vines situated around Milly and Poinchy on the left bank of the Serein River. The wine ferments spontaneously and ages on fine lees for 10 months in glass-lined tanks. Compared to the estate’s Petit Chablis, the older vines translate to more character, depth and classical restraint. As always, this is a very fine Chablis. The nose shows beautiful candied lemon, cool white peach and floral notes. Then, it’s terrifically vibrant in the mouth, with juicy fruit, ripe acidity and a generous lick of oyster shell to close. Lovely wine! A terrific, seductive Chablis and another outstanding-value wine from Domaine Bernard Defaix.

Biodynamic. Single-vineyard Chardonnay. Le Court Vit has been in the family for centuries, but the vines were ripped out 60 years ago, and the land was given to an uncle. Around 15 years ago, Guilhem repurchased it and replanted mostly with Chardonnay, alongside 30% Pinot Noir, as would have been the case in olden times. This rocky vineyard is exposed southwest on a Kimmeridgian slope overlain with white clay in the Chardonnay parcel and brown clays for the Pinot. 2017 was the first vintage, and in the scheme of Goisot’s single-vineyard Chardonnays, it sits stylistically between Biaumont and Gueules de Loup.

This Bourgogne Blanc comes from some seriously impressive terroir, namely 1.3 hectares of 20- to 50-year-old vines in the Puligny area (spread across four parcels) and a plot of young-vine Chassagne on chalky soil. These vineyards—combined with the quality of the viticulture, harvest date and confident, hands-off winemaking—offer up one of the best-value white Burgundies in our portfolio. 

Located high on the slope above Les Narvaux, Les Tillets is one of Meursault’s finest lieu-dits, where the white marl soils translate into wines of clipped precision. To drop some names, Roulot also farms Les Tillets, and Germain and Benjamin Leroux are strong in this high-country sector of Meursault. Although Les Tillets sits in the middle of the commune, François Labet describes it as “more Puligny than Meursault”. 

Not be confused with the Mâcon-Villages of the same name (Verget releases multiple cuvées under the name Terres de Pierres, which means ‘stony land’), this cuvée is a blend of both free-run and press juices from a rollcall of excellent vineyards in Vergisson and Fuissé. Les Croux (exposed to the west) and the pressed juices of the Premier Crus Sur la Roche and Les Crays bring the cool, mineral line; the south-facing vines in Les Moulins and Les Littes contribute density and layered texture. So, you get both the steel and the silk. The wines fermented naturally and aged in stainless steel vats (70%) and used barrels for six months without stirring. The most steely and compact wine so far, it’s a wonderfully composed white Burgundy with citrus and mineral notes, a rocky, tightly wound texture and a piercing, long, chalk-drenched finish. It’s a wine of great class. Wine writer Gerald Asher once said: “If luxury is never cheap, pleasure need not be expensive.” So, if the price of top Meursault and Puligny leaves you giddy, you know what to do. This wine’s typical depth, power and complexity will be revealed with time. It is still a pleasure to drink now, but three-plus years of aging would be ideal.

Biodynamic. Amid a sea of Sancerre, Les Pénitents is Alphonse Mellot’s single Chardonnay. It’s drawn from the historic hillside terroir of Nièvre—now part of the Côtes de la Charité appellation—just 35 kilometres southeast of the family’s Sancerre base. The region was almost destroyed by phylloxera in the late 19th century, but its renown goes back much further to when it was planted and farmed by the Benedictine monks of Cluny, who were gifted the land by Étienne, Count of Sancerre. Now reduced in size to some 50 hectares, the region was brought back to life in the late 1980s thanks to the dedication of several winegrowers, including Alphonse Mellot. 

Its terroir (Oxfordian limestone) is a stepping stone between the Loire Valley and Burgundy, resembling large parts of Sancerre and the Côte d’Or. The varieties (90% of the vineyard is planted to either Chardonnay or Pinot Noir) provide another clear link to the vineyards of Burgundy. Crafted from low-cropped vines planted in 1990, it is vinified in a mixture of wooden fermenters and cement tank. This gives a medium- to full-bodied, satiny and seamless Chardonnay redolent of ripe citrus fruits, flowers and pulpy stone fruits. Pure and fleshy, the long, salted-nut finish evokes quality grower Meursault. In short, it's a lovely addition to our range of Sancerre from this great wine grower.

NEW! Limited. Tucked away in a small valley just outside Château-Chalon, Le Calvaire is the source of the domaine’s first single-vineyard Chardonnay.  Calvaire refers to a warm place, and David Croix notes that, indeed, the grapes here are quick to ripen. The soils are composed of fine limestone scree and clay over grey marl. Croix explains that the marl soil provides the fine-grained texture and density, balanced by the vineyard’s low pH from the northeast exposure. 

The winemaking barely differs from Croix’s white Burgundies, with natural fermentation in used oak barrels (228 and 500-litre). One-third of the wine is raised in stainless steel. From 40-year-old vines, this is a gorgeous, tense, mineral-soaked Chardonnay delivering silken, pristine citrus, orange rind and white blossom with a finish that fizzes with potential. A thrilling freshman release.