Alice et Olivier De Moor "Chablis Bel Air et Clardy" Burgundy, France 2022

FROM LOUIS DRESSNER:

THE WINE: Bel Air et Clardy is made with Chardonnay from 2 plots of the same name. The grapes are gently pressed and then spontaneously fermented with native yeasts in stainless steel tanks. The wine then undergoes malolactic fermentation and is aged on undisturbed lees in old barrels.

THE PRODUCER: Alice and Olivier De Moor live and work in Courgis, a small village 7km southwest of Chablis. It is where Olivier grew up, and his “old” cellar, the part where he ages his Chablis in oak barrels, is underneath his grandparents' house. From the hill where Courgis sits, the view is of vineyards over hills all the way to the Chablis. Alice is from the Jura, and the two met at a large where Olivier was in charge of the vineyards. Both are Chablis estate enologists, graduates of the school, with enough knowledge to take a radically different direction for their vines and wines than their neighbors.

The De Moors have worked their vines organically since 2005, a rarity in their area. In 2002, they stopped using large harvest bins and replaced them with small boxes where the grapes are not crushed by their own weight. In 2007, they built a large and high-ceilinged winery, allowing them to do all their cellarwork by gravity. In 2008, they purchased a second-hand pneumatic pressto treat the grapes in the gentlest way possible. There is no SO2 use at harvest or during the winemaking.