2023 Henri Costal Les Truffieres Chablis Burgundy 750 ml

When it comes to Chablis, legendary importer Kermit Lynch is not an easy guy to impress. He’s been to the top of the mountain, having imported Domaine Raveneau—the most celebrated, expensive estate in the region—since 1979.

And once he tasted the wines of Romain Collet, a rising-star in Chablis with roots dating back to the French Revolution, he insisted on a joint venture: Domaine Costal. Collet crafts this custom single-vineyard bottling for Kermit. It hails from Les Truffières, the organically farmed site named for the truffles that once grew at the plot. 

At Kermit’s request, the wine is not filtered or cold-stabilized—and as soon as the first vintage was bottled, the custom label gained a following. The Wall Street Journal called the Costal wines “beautifully balanced” and “worth searching out.” Michelin-starred somms at hotspots like Sonoma’s Three-star SingleThread soon lined up to pour Les Truffières by the glass. 

Les Truffières has the uncanny ability to show off two of the appellation’s most thrilling aspects: weight and cut. It darts from taut to lush, with a lip-smacking core of orchard fruit and a clean, slicing acidity. And while it hails from the region’s northernmost reaches, it's more generous than anyone would expect, showing the weight more typically associated with the Premier Cru vineyards to the south. 

The result is something instantly recognizable as Chablis and yet distinct. For Domaine Henri Costal, the name of the game is fleshy—but fresh. The wine is made entirely in stainless-steel tanks, preserving the brightness that characterizes Chardonnay from this remote locale. Collet rests the wine in foudres, the big well-worn oak barrels that allow the wine to mellow and breathe without flavoring it with toasted wood or imparting additional tannins. 

We originally got our first bottles thanks to our Waitlist wine club partnership with SingleThread. When we asked him what he liked to pour Costal’s Chablis with, SingleThread’s former wine director Rusty Rastello said, “It’s perfect for a raw bar, but you can also dress it up and serve it with some grilled halibut.” Of course, a bottle like this is delicious anytime—no accompaniment required.