Chardonnay VDF La Justice Bellevue 2017

Chardonnay VDF La Justice Bellevue, Organic wine, fermented in a clay egg, aged in oak barrels, rich and lovingly textured but with a precise zingy freshness which cleans the pallet like no other barrel aged Chardonnay around. Quite literally the best Chardonnay we have tasted in a long time. Jerome's ability to produce these incredible wines from grapes atypical of the region where he resides is a clear indication of his immense talent as a vigneron and wine maker. We love this wine for its purity, precision and richness all married seamlessly together with just 12% abv and a cool bottle to finish it off. Simply great, great white wine.

Jérôme Bretaudeau's story is one of passion for wine and only wine. He set up the 9 hectare Domaine in 2005 after working for over 15 years at other estates and learning the ins and outs of wine making. The soils at Domaine de Bellevue are what give it the capability to make hand crafted terroir wines which truly vary from soil to soil. They are are made up pockets of clay interspersed with silica pebbles, white and pink quartz and also some volcanic rocks allowing strong minerality and complexity for the wines. The vines are old and various with unusual grape varieties for the Muscadet area (Chardonnay, Gamay, Merlot, Pinot Gris and others). Internships with Jo Landon and Guy Bossard (two giants of the area) gave him the taste for natural wine making and thus since 2009 he has been certified organic. The wines are elegant, precise and for me even more characterful than those of his former mentor Jo Ladron.