2022 Domaine Moreau-Naudet Petit Chablis, Burgundy, France

ABOUT THIS WINE

Despite coming from a 2.5 hectare parcel of young vines, this wine is made with the same level of care that the rest of the wines are. Contrary to the profile of most Petit Chablis, yields are lower than average, fermentation is with indigenous yeast, and it is harvested by hand. The wine is aged for nine months in stainless steel before bottling.

ABOUT THIS PRODUCER

Moreau-Naudet falls into a select camp of Chablis producers who are incredibly skilled in pushing ripeness to the max the old fashioned way, serious hands-on farming. In the cellar, the non-interventionist approach is then focused on two elements above all: preserving the distinctive characteristics of each Premier and Grand Cru site, and maintaining tension and salinity to counter this riper style of Chablis.

Sadly, today much of Chablis is still harvested by machine, and use of herbicides and pesticides is prevalent. Much of what we've become accustomed to drinking from these famed limestone slopes is a crisp and lean wine that's really just the result of early picking and industrial farming focused on high yields. The late Stéphane Moreau knew there was an alternative route to take after becoming enchanted with the wines and the more natural approach by the revered Vincent Dauvissat.

Stéphane joined his father, taking control of the family domaine in 1999, and flipped everything on its head. Today the regimen is full organic farming with biodynamic principles, natural yeast ferments, and harvesting 100% by hand. Relentless focus in the vineyard means picking, here in the coldest region in France for still Chardonnay, is pushed as late as possible to ensure maximum ripeness.