Armand Heitz Chardonnay VDF 2025
We have 11 in stock (Inventory is live and accurate)
The Land
A Chardonnay from a Chassagne-Montrachet family that is labeled Vin de France usually signals one thing: the grapes were grown outside Burgundy. Here the fruit comes from a friend of Armand Heitz with vines in the south of France, the same Languedoc network that supplies his Pinot Noir, on schist, marl, and limestone soils. The Vin de France category gives him freedom to buy fruit beyond the Côte d'Or and bottle it under his own name, at a fraction of what a Bourgogne Blanc now costs. Chardonnay from the south of France rarely carries Burgundian technique. This one does, and that combination is the point of the bottle.
The Wine
Armand Heitz Chardonnay Vin de France 2025 is 100% Chardonnay. The grapes are harvested into small boxes to keep the berries intact before pressing, and the wine is lightly oaked, enough to add a touch of roundness without masking the fruit. 2025 brought one of the earliest harvests on record in France, with intense early-August heat that shriveled berries and lowered juice yields, so the wines tend toward concentration. In past vintages this cuvée has shown a lemon-driven nose and a firm spine of acidity. Expect lemon, yellow apple, and a little hazelnut, with a supple mid-palate and a bright, clean finish.
The People
Armand Heitz sees a vineyard as one part of a working farm. After starting out with biodynamic methods, he shifted toward regenerative agriculture, agroecology, and permaculture as his domaine grew, and in 2021 he brought cattle, pigs, poultry, and bees onto the property to close the fertility loop with their manure. The farm's beef, charcuterie, and vegetables supply Chez Armand, the estate's farm restaurant, and guests can stay and taste at Château de Mimande. He also challenges Burgundy's rules directly: his Parcelle Interdite, a Sauvignon Blanc planted in 2018 between Puligny and Chassagne, drew objections from local appellation bodies, and he is trialing disease-resistant varieties for a hotter future.
Food Pairing
Lemon and thyme roast chicken with crisp skin is the easy match; the acidity lifts the pan juices. Shrimp and grits with a little butter and garlic suits the light oak and rounder texture. A slice of quiche Lorraine with a green salad plays the acidity against the custard, and grilled corn salad with lime and cotija matches its fruit. This is the house white for a dinner party, the bottle that pleases the Burgundy lover at the table without costing like one.
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Chardonnay, one of the world's most versatile and beloved white grape varieties, showcases a remarkable spectrum of styles, from the lean, mineral-driven expressions of Chablis in France to the rich, buttery, and oak-aged versions from California's Napa Valley. Its adaptability extends to cooler climates such as Burgundy, where it achieves elegance and complexity, and to regions like Australia's Yarra Valley, known for producing vibrant and fruit-forward renditions. This grape's ability to reflect its terroir, coupled with winemaking techniques, results in a wide array of profiles, including unoaked, crisp varieties with apple and citrus notes, to full-bodied wines with tropical fruit flavors and creamy textures.
