2020 Bernard Defaix Petit Chablis

VARIETAL: Chardonnay
REGION: Burgundy, FR
VITICULTURE: Certified Organic
WINEMAKER: Sylvain & Didier Defaix

The lion’s share of Defaix’s Petit Chablis is drawn from a parcel of Kimmeridgian-based soil, unlike most Petit, which generally comes from the lower-lying sites on Portlandian limestone. But, it’s not necessarily the type of limestone, but more the location, that makes the difference. This small parcel is very well situated on the slopes above Milly and Vaillons; in recent years, two small parcels in Poinchy and Beines have been added to the roster to flesh out some volume.

Straight out of the box, the 2020 reflects these cool, stony soils alongside the sleek depth of the vintage. Filled with crushed rock minerality, mouth-watering, ripe stone fruits and a waft of sea breeze, it’s a pulpy and classically structured wine, with a rocky texture complemented by racy freshness and Chablis-level length. Again, this vintage leaves most Petit Chablis for dust, and it is one of the best examples we have shipped.

Following the extraordinary 2018 and 2019 vintages, and despite another early harvest, 2020 has seen a return to a style verging on the classical mould. Defaix explains that nothing arrived in the winery above 13.5 degrees, and the pHs looked closer to those of 2017 than the previous two years. Another point of contrast was the relatively high levels of malic acid, bringing taut backbone to what is otherwise a (coolly) ripe vintage.