Moreau-Naudet Chablis 1er Cru Vaillons 2024
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The Land
Vaillons is the left bank's answer to the grand cru hill, directly across the Serein from it and facing back the other way. The slope runs south and east, so the vines take morning sun and cool through the afternoon, which is why Vaillons holds higher acidity than the crus opposite. It is also enormous by Chablis standards: the flag-bearing climat covers 129 hectares and takes in seven neighbors, Chatains, Beugnons, Sécher, Les Épinottes, Roncières, Mélinots and Les Lys. What a grower owns inside it matters as much as the name on the label. Soils are shallow, sticky Kimmeridgian clay over limestone, heavy enough that working them is difficult. Moreau-Naudet built its cellar on this side of town, a short walk from the vines.
The Wine
Chardonnay drawn from several parcels across Vaillons, including a block of old vines, hand-harvested and fermented with indigenous yeasts. Stainless steel carries most of the élevage, a small share in old steamed barrels, and the wine spends close to two years on fine lees. That is the argument for this cuvée: the steel protects the cru's high-acid, morning-sun character while the lees fill in the middle. White peach, lime leaf, sea salt and chalk dust, a taut line through the middle, a dry finish with the slight bitterness good Chablis should have. 2024 was one of the hardest vintages in decades here. April frost, hail on May 1, a three-week flowering in the rain, relentless mildew, and a harvest around September 16 to 20 at a fraction of normal volume. The wines are light, low in alcohol and sharply defined.
The People
Virginie Moreau inherited a domaine and a style at the same moment, in September 2016, and has spent the years since making small adjustments rather than sweeping ones. The most visible is a shift toward more tank aging and less barrel across the range, holding the wines at the crisper end of Chablis rather than letting texture take over. Her daughter has now joined the team, the third generation in the cellar Stéphane built on the Vaillons side. The estate covers about 25 hectares, farmed without herbicides or insecticides, plowed several times a year and hand-harvested. Vaillons is where that lighter touch shows most clearly, and the best entry point into what this domaine does.
Food Pairing
Acid this bright is a knife. Point it at mussels steamed with shallots, white wine and a lot of parsley, and use the bread. Try a salad of shaved fennel, green apple and Parmesan with lemon and olive oil, where the wine and the dressing run parallel. Chèvre on toast with honey and thyme gives the chalky texture something creamy to cut. Or fry whitebait, salt it hard and eat it with your fingers. This is the weeknight premier cru, the bottle you open on a Tuesday because the fish at the counter looked good.
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Chablis, a village and region in northern Burgundy, is all about Chardonnay, making arguably the best unoaked versions in the world. The wines here are defined by a crisp acidity and a strong mineral backbone. The area's unique Kimmeridgian limestone soil, packed with marine fossils, gives the wines a distinctive flinty edge. One slope overlooking the village holds the seven Grand Cru vineyards, while Premier Cru sites are scattered along both sides of the Sereine River, which cuts the region in half. Chablis is the ultimate destination for highly mineral white wines.
Burgundy - Chablis
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.
