Daniel-Etienne Defaix's family has been farming in and around Chablis since the 1500s, and the domaine remains one of the last true believers in patient, slow-release winemaking. Working almost exclusively with Chardonnay across roughly 70 acres, Defaix subjects every harvest to an exacting triage, sending all but the finest lots to the négociant trade and reserving only a small fraction for the estate's own label. That fruit is then aged far longer than nearly any other producer in the appellation dares, which is why a Defaix Premier Cru so often arrives on shelves a decade or more after the vintage on the label.

This "Vaillons" comes from a steeply sloped, 28-degree hillside within the original Vaillons parcel, planted on iron-rich clay-limestone soils with a southeast exposure that gives the wine its density and character. The vines average 45 years of age, and the wine spent roughly 18 months aging on its lees in stainless steel, with no oak influence, before further time settling in bottle. Vaillons is frequently the richest, most expansive wine in the Defaix range.

Serving Hints:

• Serve at 50-52°F to let the wine's richness and minerality both come through.
• A 15-minute decant helps the aromatics open without dulling its flinty edge.
• Pour into Burgundy (generous) stems to give the wine's expansive fruit and structure room to show.