LOUIS MICHEL CHABLIS 2022

$34.99 on 12+ (code: 12saves4)

$36.99 on 6+ (code: 6saves2)

$38.99 Reg

92 pts Decanter: Cool and linear, very good focus, with crisp apple acidity and mineral characters. Fine and elegant. A thoroughbred, needs a few months to open out but has lots of potential.

88 points Vinous: The 2022 Chablis Village, a blend of six parcels mainly on the Left Bank between Vaillons and Montmains, has a clean, precise bouquet with apple blossom and wet stone scents, delicate and quite elegant. The palate is well-balanced with fine weight, just a twist of sour lemon keeping this on edge with just the right amount of salinity on the finish. Worth seeking out. - By Neal Martin on July 2023

87-89 pts Jasper Morris: The main bottling will be from July. Mid lemon yellow. Not picking up too much bouquet as yet, but I like the wine quite a lot on the palate. There is a slight biscuity note, some yellow fruit, plenty of marine minerals and good length. Drink from 2024-2027.

Terroir: Kimmeridgian. Left bank. Hard limestone in a soil with a high clay content. Moderately deep with a reddish brown appearance. Very warm climate sheltered from the wind. Fairly gentle slopes. South-east exposure. Vaillons, Roncières, Mélinots, etc. When they are blended during the vinification process, these small climates in the Valvan valley come together to create Premier Cru Vaillons. These terroirs have a well-balanced proportion of clay/pebbles. Their soils are deep and well drained. The climate in the valley acts as a heat trap, which gives this wine warm and spicy notes; or even roasted notes in outstanding vintages.

Louis-Michel Chablis

William Kelley 7/22: Guillaume Michel presides over this important 22-hectare estate, which has long been the reference for tank-fermented and matured Chablis, a style that the Michel family did much to popularize in the 1980s. Intense and tensile wines are the calling card here, pure and unadorned in style and consistently high in quality. Indeed, I sometimes think that Louis Michel is the most underrated of Chablis's larger domaines. Some cuvées will see a slightly longer than usual élevage due to glass shortages, but I suspect that will only enhance their quality.

ALL wines are vinified and aged in stainless steel tanks, for 12-16 months.