2011 Daniel-Etienne Defaix Vaillon Premier Cru Chablis 750 ml

Whenever we see one of Daniel-Etienne Defaix’s Chablis on a wine list, we order it without fail. His business model is completely nuts, but he wouldn’t have it any other way. He’s the last of a dying breed. 

Defaix refers to himself as “Le Dernier des Mohicans”—the “Last of the Mohicans”—a reference to his status as virtually the sole remaining member of the Chablis old guard who still holds back vintages for a number of years before releasing. Nobody else is crazy enough to age their top Premier Cru Chablis in a steel tank for over a decade before bottling it, but once you taste his 2011 Vaillon Premier Cru, you’ll see exactly why he does it.

Defaix is giving you the chance to experience the incredible golden color, the interplay of citrus fruit and mineral nuance that only aged Chablis is capable of. We love this wine’s floral, crushed oyster shell, and sliced button mushroom scents, and its aged, leesy character. It’s so rich and minerally. 

Most other village-level wineries in the region are putting 2022s on the shelves; this 2011 is Defaix’s current—yes, CURRENT—release. It comes from the soulful Vaillon Premier Cru, which Burgundy expert Rajat Parr calls the “most important” Left Bank Chablis Cru. 

“These are textural, complex wines that evoke the white Burgundies of yesteryear,” Robert Parker once wrote of Defaix’s releases, telling readers to buy on sight because “much of the production is sold to France’s best restaurants.” An absolutely classic wine, made by one of France’s true mavericks.