2023 Domaine Oudin Chablis

The 2023 Domaine Oudin Chablis is a Chardonnay that tastes like the pure distillation of limestone — white flowers, citrus zest, green apple, and a clean saline minerality that is Chablis at its most precise and honest, fermented with native yeasts and aged on the lees in stainless steel with minimal sulfur. Sisters Nathalie and Isabelle Oudin farm 10 organically managed hectares in the village of Chichée, just south of Chablis, on ancient Kimmeridgian limestone soils — taking over from their parents who left Paris in 1988 to work the land, and continuing a tradition of fanatical viticulture that puts the vineyard first and the cellar second, exactly the kind of family story and sense of place we build our shelves around. Fun fact: the Oudin sisters prune to yields of roughly 45 hl/ha — well below the 60 hl/ha permitted by the appellation — because they believe any natural occurrence has a big impact on small production, and they'd rather have less wine than compromise what the land is trying to say. Pair with oysters, shellfish, grilled fish, or a simple roast chicken.