2018 Chablis, Montée de Tonnerre, 1er Cru, Domaine Billaud-Simon, Burgundy

Chardonnay is often seen as the king of white wine grapes and one of the most widely planted in the world It is suited to a wide variety of soils, though it excels in soils with a high limestone content as found in Champagne, Chablis, and the Côte D`Or. Burgundy is Chardonnay's spiritual home and the best White Burgundies are dry, rich, honeyed wines with marvellous poise, elegance and balance. They are unquestionably the finest dry white wines in the world. Chardonnay plays a crucial role in the Champagne blend, providing structure and finesse, and is the sole grape in Blanc de Blancs.

Montée de Tonnerre in Chablis, Burgundy, is a prestigious Premier Cru vineyard enjoying ample sunlight on a southwest-facing slope. The wines showcase enticing citrus and white flower aromas, with a harmonious balance of acidity and rich fruit flavours on the palate. They pair beautifully with seafood and poultry dishes and age gracefully, exemplifying Chablis' winemaking heritage.

Bernard Billaud and his nephew Samuel produce some of the very best examples of Chablis today. The domaine has 20 hectares of vines in some of the best sites in the appellation, including the Premiers Crus, Mont de Millieu and Vaillons and the Grands Crus, Blanchot, Les Clos and Les Preuses. In 1991 Billaud-Simon built a new state-of-the-art winery, equipped with numerous temperature-controlled, stainless steel vats. Previously the domaine had glass-lined, steel tanks, which were difficult to keep cool during fermentation. The majority of the domaine`s wines see no oak at all, with the aim being to produce Chablis of elegance, purity, balance and freshness. These are crisp, mineral-laden wines that are superb examples of modern style, unoaked Chablis. They are delicious when young, yet age beautifully as well.