His Village Level Wine is Tops in its Class!
I first started working with Samuel Billaud at my shops in Houston, back in the early 2000s. At that time, he was the winemaker for his uncle’s winery, named Billaud Simon. The family estate was some 200 years old, and the uncle oversaw all the business dealings while Samuel made the wines. And what incredible wines they were! For twenty years Samuel made some of the greatest wines of Chablis. But as these things can happen, a family argument occurred when the uncle decided to sell the family business to a large firm, Faiveley, and essentially cut Samuel out of the wine making decisions. So, Samuel broke out on his own, taking 10 acres which were his birthright and moving into a winery that he rented in the center of the town of Chablis. From that moment, his star began to rise! Each year he acquired one or two additional parcels – mostly in Premier and Grand Cru holdings – always staying true to his organic and Bio-dynamic preferences. Today, with vintage 2018, he is considered among the top 3 qualitative bottlers in ALL of Chablis!
“Once Samuel moved into his new winery in Chablis, sorted out his own vineyard holdings, he is considered right at the top of Chablis producers alongside the likes of Raveneau and Vincent Dauvissat. After all he’s suffered, you might say he deserves it, but that would be ignoring the sheer quality of his wines.”
~ Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
“Samuel Billaud is one of those winemakers who epitomizes great, traditional Chablis. If a neophyte demanded to know exactly what a Chablis ought to be, then I might well choose one of Samuel’s wines.”
~ Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
“Billaud brings a huge amount of experience because of his involvement with the family domaine and as the scores and comments suggest, he also knows where to source top quality raw materials.”
~ Burghound
“What I find most compelling about these wines is how they balance textural richness with energy… Billaud has done a tremendous job.”
~ Antonio Galloni, Vinous
Today, I bring you the best in Village level Chablis. This is neither Premier Cru nor Grand Cru, yet it will go toe to toe with some producers’ wines in those categories. Yes, it’s that good! Just read the ecstatic reviews above… Oh, and the review from Parker’s Wine Advocate below!
Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate: Aromas of citrus zest, pear, white flowers, crisp green apple and oyster shell introduce the 2018 Chablis Villages, a medium to full-bodied, satiny and seamless wine that’s elegantly textural and incisive, with racy acids and a layered core of fruit. This is a terrific example of the appellation and well worth seeking out.
2018 Samuel Billaud Chablis
$29.99