2023 Michel Niellon - Chassagne Montrachet (750ml)

The Niellon family has grown vines in Chassagne-Montrachet since the nineteenth century, when the domaine's roots trace back to Léon Niellon. Michel Niellon joined his father Marcel in the 1950s and began estate bottling in the 1960s, gradually building the property from about four hectares to its current seven and a half. Today it is managed by Michel's son-in-law, Michel Coutoux, who carries on a reputation as one of Chassagne's finest producers.

This village Chassagne-Montrachet is grown on limestone and clay soils and farmed without herbicides, with plowing used instead for weed control. Niellon is known for picking early, often ahead of the rest of the village, to preserve acidity and freshness. Fermentation happens spontaneously in stainless steel, and the wine is then moved to barrel for malolactic fermentation and aging, with new oak kept to roughly a quarter of the total.

The wine reveals ripe orchard fruit, white flowers and hazelnut on the nose, followed by yellow apple, lemon curd and a flinty edge on the palate. The texture is rounded and polished, lifted by underlying freshness and a chalky finish. Serve it with roasted sole, poached chicken, or a triple-cream cheese.