The interpretation of Chardonnay through the soil and climate of Chablis transforms this grape variety into a wine that is unique in the world.

Mont de Milieu, Montmains, Fourchaume, Vaucoupins... these Premier Crus are renowned for their quality and highly distinctive personalities despite their geographical proximity. For J. Moreau & Fils, the Chablis terroir represents a genuine winemaking challenge. For Lucie Depuydt, the House winemaker, the key objective is to express the excellence of this challenging land. The steep landscape combined with soils that are often very shallow and rest on hard marl and limestone does not make vine growing easy, and yet…

Around 250 million years ago, during the Secondary Era, a major geological shift occurred. Continental drift reshaped the Earth. The sea covered the Paris Basin, including Chablis, and for 100 million years deposited limestone sediments, shells, and other mollusks. During the relatively short Kimmeridgian period (around 5 million years), some species fossilised, notably “Exogyra virgula”, forming distinct geological strata.

At the end of the Jurassic period (200 to 145 million years ago), the sea receded. The centre of the Paris Basin collapsed under the weight of successive geological layers, forming cuestas (a type of ridge resembling the edge of a basin). Chablis lies on one of these cuestas, where the famous Kimmeridgian subsoil emerges.

Millions of years later, Chardonnay has found an exceptional expression here, producing wines with remarkable minerality, nuanced depending on the appellation, with smoky, fruity or floral notes.