Collet Chablis 1er Cru “Vaillons” 2024

The Domaine Collet is run these days by Romain Collet, the energetic and talented grandson of Jean Collet, the founder. He experiments with all of today’s means of elevage, so a visitor to the cellars now walks past not only stainless steel tanks and large oak foudres, but also cement eggs, clay amphoras, and barrels of all sizes, from traditional Burgundian to demi-muids holding 400 or 500 liters. Romain skillfully matches the new and old techniques with the various terroirs, crafting delicious and varied wines with much character.

Collet’s Chablis 1er Cru “Vaillons” has always been a reader favorite and it’s easy to see why. Romain raises this left bank cuvée in three different vessels, one third each: stainless steel tank, barrel, and huge foudre. There’s no hint of oak, but the three methods blended together round the wine beautifully into a complex cuvée with a very long finish. It has a bit more weight than classical Chablis, but avoids being flat or overly tropical. Burghound found “citrus and apple” with “voluminous middle weight flavors that flash a subtle bead of minerality.”