Billaud-Simon 2020 Chablis Tete d'Or

"I love the lemon-blossom character of this very bright Chablis, which has a lovely balance of oyster-shell character, creaminess from sur-lie maturation and racy acidity. Long, chalky finish with enough energy to give this plenty of aging potential." James Suckling 92 Points

"Longer aged than the classic Chablis cuvée, with 25% matured in wood of different sizes. Plenty of weight and intensity from a selection of parcels just outside Montée de Tonnerre. Spicy, with some intriguing white pepper notes, Olivier Bailly says this will improve for at least three years. A wine to accompany food." Decanter 92 Points

"Whereas in the previous incarnation of Domaine Billaud-Simon, the Tête d’Or cuvée could be aggressively oaky, now the philosophy is to make a wine from the best plots, such as those close to Montée de Tonnerre, along with Pargues from the left bank, and to vinify around 20% in wood of various shapes and sizes. This makes for a really impressive wine in 2020 which is likely to be bottled in January 2022 with the crus. This comes over at first as more chiselled with only on the second half of the palate the weight of fruit plus a little oak support starting to show. Quite intense, with medium acidity and good persistence. This will need time in bottle." Jasper Morris 91 Points

"A deft touch of wood sets off the ripe aromas of white orchard fruit, sea breeze and a hint of shellfish. The delicious and attractively rich flavors possess fine volume on the seductively textured, mouthcoating and firm finale. This too could use better depth, but it is excellent for its level (I particularly like the mouthfeel) and is worth checking out." Burghound 90 Points

Domaine Billaud-Simon was founded in 1815 by Charles Louis Noël Billaud upon his return from the Napoleonic Wars. He planted vines on his family holdings, which were later expanded through the marriage of his relative Jean Billaud to Renée Simon in the 1930s. Situated behind high walls near the river Serein, the winery is now helmed by Jean’s son, Bernard. Known as one of the top producers in Chablis, Billaud Simon’s 20 hectares include vineyards in 4 of the 7 Grand Crus: Blanchots, Les Clos, Les Preuses, and Vaudésir, and four leading Premier Crus: Fourchaume, Mont de Milieu, Montée de Tonnerre, and Vaillons. They also make AC Chablis of exclusively from estate fruit in the Kimmeridgean soils surrounding their 1er and Grand Cru vineyards.

At the age of 18, Bernard Billaud left Chablis for Paris to study fine art. He made a successful career in communications consulting, while continuing to find time for his artistic pursuits of painting, sculpture and jazz music. Eventually however the family biz siren song lured him back to Chablis in 1991 where he made it his mission to ratchet up the quality of the wine. He wanted to produce classically styled, ethereal Chablis of delicacy.

Bernard completely overhauled the winery at Billaud-Simon, installing a pneumatic press, all new tanks, and the most modern fermentation equipment available. Although they now have state of the art technology, they maintain an important balance with traditional practices. This includes the use natural yeast for fermentation, and natural advancement into malo. Most wines are vinified and matured in stainless and don’t see any wood. There are two exceptions: Premier Cru Mont de Milieu Vieilles Vignes and Grand Cru Blanchots Vieilles Vignes, which each see some large oak. Light fining and filtration result in Chablis of elegance, purity, balance and freshness. They are delicious when young, and even more beautiful with age.