Gilles & Romain Collet Chablis Montmains Premier Cru 2020

Price drops to $34.95 pr bottle when you purchase 6 or more bottles!

Those of you sage First Bottle lovers who have fallen for our Romain Collet Chablis offerings over the years – know this: same great product, same unbeatable pricing – just a new label on this 91 point Premier Cru Chablis!

With over 200 years experience in Chablis, the Collet family knows a thing or two about producing world-class chardonnay. This excellent expression of the heralded Premier Cru site of Montmains is the epitome of classical Chablisienne style: flinty, zesty, salty, and oh-so-delicious!

The Collets broke free of the negociant model in 1979 and have spent the last five decades building a reputation for consistent excellence across their portfolio. After his father, Gilles, suffered a stroke in 2008, Romain Collet took over chief winemaking responsibilities at just 21 years of age. The winemaking quickie developed a reputation for precision, texture, and laser-like focus...essentially everything we look for in a killer Chablis. The family parcels extend across an impressive array of Chablis’ best sites: Les Clos, Valmur, Mont de Milieu, Montée de Tonnerre, Vaillons, Séchet, Les Pargues, and of course, Montmains, with its two sub-region lieux dits of Butteaux and Les Forêts. (Both of which can be included in Montmains, and often are, depending on the vintage for Collet.) The family holdings are mostly farmed organically and biodynamically, and an overall preference for stainless steel winemaking and minimal new oak aging is utilized across the portfolio.

The Collet’s Montmain parcels are grown on Chablis’ famous Kimmeridgian limestone marl with next to no clay content. If Chablisienne winemaking is revered for its minerality and purely expressive style – this soil is undoubtedly the reason why. Only stainless steel is used for this bottling – and the “return to classicism” theme of the cooler 2020 vintage is amplified in this vibrant and zippy example. Citrine notes of lemon balm and orange blossom lead things off, with a crisp and tart core of Granny Smith apples, accompanied by a floral and waxy freshness of honeysuckle and wild mint. Salted sea breezes and pulverized oyster shells provide the backbone – and this is simply a masterclass of Premier Cru Chablis. For just $34.95 when you get six makes this a steal – and these 2020 Chablis are drinking mighty fine right now. I’m taking a three-pack to the coast at the earliest opportunity – ‘cause oysters are calling!

PAIRING IDEAS: Miso marinated Black Cod with Shrimp Dumplings was the signature dish of my favorite Michelin-star restaurant, Terra, and a classical style of Chablis such as this was a favorite pairing with the dish. Nobu’s recipe is close – but you still can find the Terra cookbook online for super cheap!