Variety: Chardonnay

The Defaix family is a fourth generation of a family of vine-growers rich in personality. Bernard Defaix started the vineyard in 1959 with 2 ha. Vineyard holdings across the Chablis region of Burgundy have expanded to 27 ha including three Premier Cru vineyards (Côte de Léchet, Vaillons and Lys) and others in the Chablis and Petit Chablis appellations. Bernard’s sons Sylvain and Didier have been managing the domain for about twenty years, handling winemaking and vineyard operations, respectively. Didier’s wife, Helene, handles administration and sales. Although this is a small property – common in France – the Defaix family undertook an extensive study of their vineyard soils to better understand vine root systems and the impact of mechanized vineyard operations. From 2012, they have been producing organic wines.

The entry level bottling of the Bernard Defaix family is their Petite Chablis. The appellation generally incorporates vines from the flatter grounds leaving the hillsides for the other Chablis classifications. This Petite Chablis is bottled just 8 months after harvest and aging in stainless steel to ensure freshness and drinkability.