2017 Louis Moreau Chablis Burgundy France 750 ml

Our weekly judging panel can get heated, as Wine Team members pour their wines then advocate for them, trying to convince the skeptics at the table (and there’s always one) that their wine is worthy of Wine Access members. But every so often, a wine will make an open-and-shut case for itself—and the sheer pleasure-to-price ratio of the Louis Moreau evoked nothing but nodding heads and flat-out agreement from our team. This is a white wine that didn’t just meet our strict standards, but blew past them.

The freshly poured 2017 Louis Moreau Chablis was glimmering in our glasses, and as we all took deep inhales, pure aromatics of green apple, salted lemon peel, and white flowers leapt from the glass, as did the oyster shell minerality that is a hallmark of top Chablis. Open and expressive yet pinpoint-focused, that first pour showed us the kind of ripeness, purity, and mouthwatering salinity that we associate with Premier Cru-level Chablis.

This stunning Chablis, which won Silver at the Decanter World Wine Awards, just got better when we got into the details. Because of the Moreau family’s deep roots in the region, plus the fact that we got our purchase order in just before the tariffs took effect, this Chardonnay stunner is just $27. This is going to be our go-to Chablis, until it’s all gone. 

A big part of its value owes to the Moreau family’s deep roots in Chablis. They’ve been in the region for over 200 years, and that means they can afford to take a long view: When fluctuations in the market and other unpredictable events occur—like the low-yielding 2015 and 2016 harvests that caused many producers to raise prices—Moreau can stand firm, which makes their stellar Chablis stand out for its value nearly as much as for its quality and complexity.  

Over their centuries in Chablis, the Moreau family has accumulated 124 acres of vines, and the 2017 Chablis is a domaine bottling. That means the grapes are harvested and the wine is bottled properly on the estate, and the 2017 showcases the energy of very healthy grapes that are farmed under the philosophy known as la lutte raisonée (“the reasoned struggle”). The deep-rooted 40-45 year old vines get significantly less exposure to herbicides, fungicides, and pesticides, and this wine puts those healthy and vibrant Chardonnay grapes on full display.

It all results in a domaine-raised Chablis that boasts Premier Cru-type pedigree for a price rivals that of the largest négociant houses’ large-production wines. Compelling character, perfect ripeness, and the cut and salty mineral edge that we expect from top-flight Chablis—that’s what Moreau’s 2017 brings, and it’s why our Wine Team, down to a person, are taking home cases of their own. We recommend you follow their lead.