Romain Collet is a terrific young winemaker running his family estate in Chablis. He dabbles with modern, oak-infused Chablis, and the wines are tasty if not traditional. But our favorites are always the classics: plenty of stony freshness, low or no toast, and clean zippy finishes.
Romain’s lineup of outstanding 2022s are in our current May Futures offering (deadline Sunday) – those wines are due in later this summer. In the meantime, Romain’s 2021s (what’s left of them) are in stock and exquisite – Burghound called them “entirely classic” – and lovers of old school Chablis will find much to like.
We poured Romain’s 2021 Chablis 1er Cru Vaillons over the weekend at our annual Oysterfest warehouse event, and the match was magnificent. Romain uses an elevage of ⅓ barrels, ⅓ foudre, and ⅓ stainless tank for this cuvée, and his 50+ year old vines here produce a perfectly balanced wine, with good concentration and well-supported ripeness.
Jasper Morris found the bouquet “both stylish and typical, stones with lemon zest.” Burghound praised its “cool and airy aromas,” its “intense and attractively sleek” flavors, and its “lovely minerality.” It’s finally starting to feel like summer here in New England; this zippy Chablis is a perfect match.
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Collet Chablis 1er “Vaillons” 2021
bottle price: $38
FREE EAST COAST SHIPPING ON ANY 12 BOTTLES
