Saint-Aubin 1er Cru Le Puits AOC 2024

A crystalline, pale Chardonnay that currently hints at more than it reveals. The color is a fairly intense golden yellow, the contour taut and austere. Thomas Morey recommends four years of bottle ageing for this wine.

Le Puits lies above the village of Saint-Aubin and faces southeast. Only 0.6 hectares there are classified as Premier Cru, while the area above it, twice the size, is classified as Village. The soil is predominantly calcareous, rather white, with a fairly large amount of small pebbles. An underground water source keeps the vineyard consistently well supplied with water. It was planted in 2000 with a sélection massale, and the first vintage was made in 2002.

Chardonnay, dry, 13.0% ABV. Fermentation takes place with indigenous yeasts in a combination of neutral barrel and tank, with malolactic fermentation occurring naturally. The wine then rests on its lees, without any bâtonnage; the proportion of new oak is around 20%. Sulfur is added only during the final six months in barrel, in several minimal doses, so the wine never exceeds 35 mg/l.

On the nose, apple, greengage, green pineapple, lime and lemon, along with a touch of reduction, some yeast, vanilla and a hint of oak. The palate is bright, citrusy and austere, finely structured, the fruit still reserved.

Thomas Morey is the tenth generation of a family that has lived in Chassagne-Montrachet since 1643. Since 2007, he and Sylvie Morey have farmed 13 hectares across seven villages of the Côte de Beaune, spread over 57 parcels; in 2011 he began the conversion to organic farming. The Domaine de la Romanée-Conti has entrusted him with the care of its vines in Le Montrachet Grand Cru.