2020 Samuel Billaud Chablis 1er Cru 'Séchet' Vieilles Vignes
Region: Burgundy, France
Grape: Chardonnay
Culinary Suggestions: Lobster, Prawns, Goat Cheese
Practices: Sustainable, Organic
About
Domaine Samuel Billaud is located in the well-established Chablis region in the far north of Burgundy and, since its foundation in 2009, has been on the watch list of every serious Chablis fan. Why? Because Samuel is producing wine of extreme finesse, showcasing the best of what Chablis has to offer. He knows the region inside out and has an intimate understanding of its signature style.
Samuel makes delicious terroir* driven wines with minimum intervention during the winemaking process. This results in an array of beautiful Chardonnays that are set to seduce. The crunchy acidity and minerality of the Kimmeridgian soils shine through with deft elegance. The taste is a mix of fresh apple, white peach, silex (resulting from the deposits of flint found in the soil) and oyster shell flavours along with some delightful brioche aromas. These wines are to be placed on the podium of the very best Chablis wines.
The name of the Domaine might not sound familiar just yet. However, the Billaud family has been making Chablis since 1815 under the name Billaud-Simon. Samuel has learned and worked his way up at Billaud-Simon making a name for himself as a very skilled winemaker, with his talent for winemaking being nurtured and developed at Billaud-Simon through making its last twenty vintages or so.
With this experience and tradition Samuel developed strong beliefs and convictions that couldn’t fully be realised at a big producer like Billaud-Simon. So he launched his much-anticipated micro-négoce by himself, to allow him to stand alone and perfect his style. This freedom gave him the opportunity to be liberated as the true artist that he is.
In 2014, Samuel Billaud made a welcomed entrance into the top five producers of the region. Billaud-Simon was sold in August 2014 to Faiveley, a large négociant from the Côte d’Or. From this sale, Samuel inherited one sixth of the vineyard holding, 4.2 hectares of vineyards in total. With these vines as well as his deep roots in the region which enable him to source grapes of great quality from some of the most recognised growers, he has all the tools required to continue to elevate the quality of his wines even further.
Since the 2014 vintage Samuel has built a new winery in Chablis with the latest technology and machinery available. As a result, the confidence and the quality of the wines have been raised by yet another notch. What’s more, 500 litre demi-muid oak barrels are used for the maturation of the 1er Cru and Grand Cru in order to magnify these complex wines without bringing substantial oak flavours. The balance is extremely fine.
Today, what Samuel is producing has already grabbed the attention of famed wine critics like Neal Martin of Wine Advocate magazine, who has predicted that this Domaine is set to climb to the very top of Chablis producers alongside the likes of Raveneau and Vincent Dauvissat.
“Year-in, year-out – Samuel produces some of the most texturally sensuous wines of Chablis. I always look forward to my visit” Bill Nanson, Burgundy Report
Finally, Samuel’s range includes some of the best appellations like the 1er Crus “Séchet”, “Mont de Milieu”, “Montée de Tonnerre” and the Grand Crus “Les Clos”, “Les Preuses” and “Vaudésir”. If you like Chablis, these wines are well worth your attention. - Importer Note
Tasting Notes
A classic Chablis nose, in fact it would be difficult to mistake it for anything else, precedes racy, delineated and overtly mineral-driven flavors that flash outstanding length on the stony, bone-dry and focused finale. While very tight today, I suspect that this impressive effort will open up moderately quickly.
91-94 points - Allen Meadows, Burghound.com October 2021
Drink: 2026+
Rated: Outstanding, Sweet Spot