Chablis 1er Cru, Domaine 47N 3E, Guillaume Michaut, Côte de Savant

Steely in the glass with green and yellow flecks, this thought-provoking white leads with cut metal (steel?), chalk, iodine, sea-spray and oyster water on the nose. With more air, citrus blossoms, sweet Meyer lemon, crisp nectarine, lime zest and soft cheese appear. The wine is fermented in 500L oak barrels and this adds a richness and creaminess to the mid-palate that balances the savory mineral, steel and ocean flavors. The palate is young and tense but full of depth and complexity driven by flavors of the soil with just ripe citrus and stone fruits.

Guillaume Michaut has been surrounded by vineyards and the history of Chablis since childhood. As a teenager, Guillaume worked alongside his father and uncles in the vineyards and joined the family domaine in 2004. After his father passed away, Guillaume realized that his vision was starkly different from that of his uncles, and decided to set out on his own with his small share of family vines back in 2018. These vineyards represent just over one hectare altogether: 0.4 hectares of Chablis in Vau Brou, which he helped plant in 2000, and a 0.6 hectare block in the Premier Cru of Beauroy, which stretches from Beines nearly to the town of Chablis. Michaut’s parcel was planted in 1980 and is located more precisely in the lieu-dit Côte de Savant, found just outside of the town of Beines and across from the retention lake that his grandfather helped create in the 1960s. Guillaume developed an interest in organic farming and low-intervention winemaking and adopted a winemaking philosophy that respects the terroir and the vineyard over the process and the winemaker. Setting out on his own was an opportunity to put this belief into action. This began with promoting the place [rather than himself] by naming his domaine 47 N 3 E, which refers to the longitude and latitude of his hometown of Beines. He produces two Premier Cru wines from Beauroy and Côte de Savant. Fruit for these cuvées comes from the exact same vineyard, which can be labeled as Beauroy *or* Côte de Savant. Beauroy is aged in stainless steel, while the Côte de Savant is fermented and aged in 500L oak demi-muids.