Tasted in Milly with Angèle Barat, 15 March 2024.
Domaine Barat
6 Rue de Léchet
89800 Milly
Tel: +33 3 86 42 40 07
www.domaine-barat.fr
Producer’s Instagram
Siblings, Angèle & Ludovic Barat are the 6th generation to run this family domaine.
I met Angèle in their old cellars – constructed in 1725 and bought by the family in the 1980s – but it will be the last time here as they have a new winery which should be completed later this year.
For most of those previous 5 generations, the domaine’s crop was sold to the négoce, just enough retained to provide personal bottles for the family. Angèle has been here since 2000, taking her father’s place in 2008. It’s a 21 hectare domaine whose main market is France – developed through salons – though less since covid – but export is important here too.
Brother Ludovic is occupied with the vines and makes some work in the vines for other producers too.
The wines…
A really enjoyable first visit to this domaine – some great wines too !!
2022 Petit Chablis
Vine on the plateau between Beines and La Chapelle
A vertical nose with some fine high tones – lovely. In the mouth, supple, slightly saline – very nicely textured – a generosity but also of flavour, not just concentration. A small finishing citrus bitter but no small finish – this is long…
2022 Chablis
Extra airy freshness. More direct and chiselled, almost juicy and again almost a zesty finish. That’s such a delicious wine…
2022 Chablis 1er Vaillons
Wider in the mouth – slowly melting flavour – beautifully textured again. Growing larger in this finish – more saline once more. Delicious wine again – not super energetic – but enough!
More airy complexity here – nice, tiny precisions of aroma. Mouth-filling, but still calm, more overtly mineral in style – structurally attractive then a superb intensity of finishing flavour – I love it !!
2022 Chablis 1er Fourneaux
In Fourneaux and Pregirot
Fine freshness with an airy but precise yellow citrus – not too ripe. Holding a nice place in the centre of the palate – slightly fluid and delicious – that’s a simply excellent wine – I love it. The finish radiating out from the core…
For these last two, the domaine is currently commercialising the 2019s – ‘we like to wait for these – they are good, but it’s too early!’
Another airy but fine nose – beautiful clarity and precision. Extra width, extra cool clarity and beautifully fluid again. Mont de Milieu as I wish I could find more often – without the Côte d’Or ‘inspired’ patina of oak. Bravo – a burst of finishing flavour too. Another wine I love!