2023 Domaine Paul Nicolle Petit Chablis

Ample ripe fruit that is complemented with a little seaspray, bitter grapefruit and an ever changing array of brine, saline, oyster shell. Very transparent, even with the ample fruit.

The palate is salty, briny and mineral. Showing its bones. All class. Very good.

-Jono Hersey, FWC

Clear pale colour. An attractive fresh style, all in white fruit, delivering impressive intensity at this level yet with delicacy rather than too much flesh. Drink from 2025-2027. Tasted Jun 2024.

88 points

-Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy

The Domaine

Domaine Paul Nicolle is located in the village of Fleys which sits four kilometres east of the main township. Leaving Chablis, the grand cru hills Montée de Tonnerre and Mont de Milieu sit in view to the left before the road drops away into a relatively steep valley with 1er Cru Les Fourneaux appearing on the opposing slope.

Paul started the domaine with a single hectare and as his son Robert, and his grandson Charly, have taken over the operations, holdings have now grown to 20 hectares. The wines are classic but with volume, minerality, strong iodine character and truly long length.

The Wine

I was initially taken aback by the pricing of their Petit Chablis—it seemed too close to their AC Chablis, and when considering the quality of their Vieilles Vignes, I saw little reason to pursue it. That said, availability made the decision for me, as they never had enough for us to taste or purchase.

That changed in 2022, when they finally had the volume to present the wine and share the history of the plot. Sourced from a single vineyard in Fleys, this site was once considered among the best in the village. However, with the introduction of higher taxes and more stringent classification regulations, an attempt was made to be strategic—removing its official status while trying to command a higher price based on reputation alone, despite a lower classification.

Unsurprisingly, that approach didn’t work, but what remains is an overperforming Petit Chablis, now offered at a slightly lower price than the Chablis AC—delivering incredible value for what’s in the bottle.

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