Domaine Bessin-Tremblay Chablis Vieilles Vignes 2022

Domaine Bessin-Tremblay’s Chablis Vieilles Vignes 2022 is a striking expression of old-vine Chardonnay from the heart of Chablis. Sourced from vines aged 35 to 80 years, it delivers impressive depth and precision while staying true to the region’s hallmark freshness and minerality. This cuvée captures the tension of the vintage, shaped by hydric stress and slower ripening, to create a wine that is both vibrant and finely etched.

Tasting Notes
In the glass, the 2022 Vieilles Vignes shows a pale, luminous straw color with green highlights that hint at its youth and freshness. The nose is pure and focused, opening with notes of white peach and crisp green apple, layered with lemon zest, wet stone and a subtle saline nuance that is distinctly Chablis. On the palate, the wine is medium-bodied yet wonderfully light on its feet, driven by bright, mouthwatering acidity. Citrus and orchard fruits are tightly woven with a chalky, mineral backbone, giving a sense of clarity and precision from start to finish. The mid-palate shows good concentration from the old vines, while the finish is long, clean and linear, with a lingering impression of lemon peel and crushed rocks. Enjoyable now for its energy and purity, it also has the structure to evolve gracefully over the next 5–7 years, gaining complexity and more pronounced tertiary notes with time in bottle.

Production
This Chablis Vieilles Vignes is rooted in classic Kimmeridgian limestone soils, rich in marine fossils, which lend the wine its characteristic tension, salinity and minerality. The old vines, many between 35 and 80 years of age, naturally produce lower yields of concentrated, characterful fruit. Harvesting is carried out with great care to preserve freshness and avoid oxidation, typically timed to capture optimal ripeness while maintaining high natural acidity. Vinification is done entirely in stainless steel, a deliberate choice to highlight the purity of the terroir and the precision of the fruit. Fermentation and élevage in tank preserve the wine’s crystalline profile, with no distracting oak influence, allowing the slow, even ripening of the 2022 vintage—shaped by hydric stress—to translate directly into the glass.

Food & Serving
This Chablis Vieilles Vignes is a natural partner for classic seafood dishes—think oysters, scallops, steamed mussels, poached white fish or sushi—where its bright acidity and minerality can shine. It also pairs beautifully with fresh goat cheese, lightly grilled vegetables, poultry in lemon-herb sauces and simple dishes featuring fine ingredients, such as sole meunière or a delicate seafood risotto. Serve well-chilled, ideally at 9–11°C (48–52°F), to emphasize its freshness and precision. A short decant of 20–30 minutes, or simply opening the bottle a bit in advance, can help the wine unfurl aromatically without sacrificing its vibrant edge.

Producer
Domaine Bessin-Tremblay, led by Jean-Claude and now the next generation with Romain (and family members such as Antoine), is regarded as a meticulous and terroir-focused estate in Chablis. Based in the northern reaches of Burgundy, the domaine has built its reputation on crafting precise, mineral-driven Chablis that faithfully express their individual sites, often from old vines rooted deep in Kimmeridgian limestone. Over the years, their wines have garnered consistent praise from critics and sommeliers for their purity, balance and aging potential, helping to cement the estate as a reference point for authentic, traditionally made Chablis. The Vieilles Vignes bottling, in particular, showcases the domaine’s commitment to harnessing old-vine material to produce wines of character, tension and finesse.