Chablis Cru, 2017. Montee de Tonnerre Jean Collet

Jean Collet started Domaine Collet in 1954, the heir of a Chablis grape-growing family since 1792. After the days of Jean, came Gilles, one of the most animated personalities in Chablis. He's generous, lively and usually the life of the party, always keeping his personality from being as serious as the wines he crafted over numerous decades with his father, and even more so now with his son, Romain. In 2008, Gilles was struck with nerve damage on one side of his body and had to prematurely pass the baton. After only a few years of Romain putting new ideas to the test in the cellar and vineyard-natural yeast fermentations, organic and biodynamic farming-Gilles stepped aside completely and Romain began to make notable leaps from vintage to vintage.

Organic viticulture is now part of the domaine's practice under Romain's direction-and with full support from the family. The two Grand Crus Valmur and Les Clos, the 1er Crus Montee de Tonnerre, Vaillons, Butteaux and Forets have all been converted to organic farming, as well as a good portion of the Chablis AOC wine, where the organic culture tests were first done. The rest are sustainable, lutte raisonee, farming with the intention of eventually having all the sites fully converted.

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