Article: Samuel Billaud - Chablis 2024
Samuel Billaud - Chablis 2024
I've made this argument before, but the arrival of the 2024 Samuel Billaud Chablis makes it hard to resist making it again.
Every fall, there's a scramble among wine critics to be first with their vintage call — so much so that most are tasting Chablis June to October, roughly a year after harvest. I understand the logic: the wines have spent a year in tank or barrel and, in most vintages, are close to bottling. Meanwhile the Côte d'Or vignerons don't start welcoming professionals until November, as a lead-up to the Hospices de Beaune. It's less about the wine being ready and more about the calendar working out that way.
Is it the best moment to taste? I'd say no. It gives you a good read, which is exactly why scores show up in a range (89-92), that kind of thing. That range is honest, but keep in mind I’d say these are on the conservative side. It says the wine has real potential, but in many cases there are still months of élevage ahead, and it's hard to know exactly where a wine lands even a year later. Tasting the wine today, I will say these are at the upper end of the range!
The early word on 2024 was genuinely positive. It was a brutal growing season. Chablis saw more rain than anyone could remember, and the damp conditions made it nearly impossible to get tractors into the vineyards to treat for disease. Oidium got so bad that many vignerons had to abandon their biodynamic and organic practices just to save their vines for future harvests. Those who managed to save what little fruit remained reported some of the lowest yields in a generation, but what came in, picked late in September, was wonderfully concentrated.
I knew we had something special on our hands, as I traveled to Chablis in March of this year to taste the wines for myself. At Samuel Billaud, the wines were still sitting in tank, waiting to be bottled a full 6 months after both Meadows and Jasper Morris tasted the wines. Its amazing at how much depth can be gained in that relatively short amount of time. I can only go by what I tasted on that cold March morning vs what I am tasting today a full 6 months later.
I loved what I tasted. Energy, depth, length, and above all remarkable freshness and acidity. It was easy to see why 2014 was the comparison every vigneron reached for when I asked what vintage 2024 most resembled.
Samuel is always generous with his time when I visit. I've been working with these wines since the 2012 vintage, and I can say without hesitation he is one of the nicest vignerons you will ever meet and above all else he is crafting some of the most impressive Chablis being produced today!
As the wines arrived this afternoon, I want to draw your attention to his Chablis Village, as that was the frist wine I popped. This isn't your typical village Chablis. It shows remarkable texture, depth, sea breeze, and a classic Chablis salinity you'd expect from most producers' 1er cru. It's a blend of three village-level plots, Cartes-Fontenottes, Les Pargues,
and Bas de Chapelot, two on the left bank, one on the right. Aged 18 months in 100% stainless steel. I'm sipping a bottle as I am writing this and I am going to need to find some oysters to finish off the last of this bottle - crazy length, flat out delicious. I can hardly put the wine down.
Most of the Grand Cru and 1er Cru have already sold though. I do have a couple of cases of both Vaillons Vieilles Vignes and Mont de Milieu still available. Do yourself a favor: if you love classically driven Chablis that makes your jaw ache, grab some of Samuel’s wines before they disappear for good. I've been trying to source more in Europe for the last several weeks and have come up empty. These are phenomenal wines that deserve your full attention. They come with my highest recommendation.
Made from the usual three locations. 25 hl/ha on average. A little bready yeast note on the nose along with its more classical components. Wonderful tension behind. The “they don’t make Chablis like they used to” grumblers should be satisfied. Crisp citrus notes infuse the finish. Drink from 2027-2030. Tasted Jun 2025.
- Jasper Morris, 90-92 | 5 Stars
A slightly riper, if otherwise similar nose precedes bigger-bodied flavors that also possess excellent punch and detail while exuding evident minerality on the dry, balanced and lingering finale that is just a bit more complex. This too is excellent for its level and very much worth checking out.
- Burghound, 89-92 Outstanding Top Value!
Airy and cool aromas include those of white pepper, floral, oyster shell and a whiff of tidal pool character. The super-sleek and borderline painfully intense medium weight flavors possess impressively length on the very dry and cuts-like-a-knife finale. Lovely.
- Burghound, 90-93
As is often the case, there is a vague suggestion of the exotic on the super-fresh and bright nose of citrus confit, quinine, petrol and shellfish. Much like the Fourneaux, the medium-bodied flavors are dense, powerful and serious with superb length on the balanced finish that is borderline tannic. This too could use more depth, but it is undeniably promising and should age accordingly.
- Burghound, 91-94 Sweet Spot Outstanding!
