At the heart of Burgundy lies Domaine Michel Niellon, a producer that consistently crafts captivating and expressive Chardonnays. Currently, three generations of the Niellon family are at the helm, with Michel Coutoux, Michel Niellon's son-in-law, maintaining fidelity to Michel's signature winemaking methods. The vibrant Chassagne wines they create begin life in steel, transitioning to oak for malolactic conversion and aging, with about a third of the barrels being new. The distinctive richness of their wines is achieved without batonnage, drawing solely from the sun-kissed Chassagne fruit, creamy oak, and time on lees.
Harvests at Domaine Niellon are characteristically the earliest in the village, infusing a certain freshness into the wines. The domaine's practices of keeping yields low and maintaining old vines imbue the wines with intricate complexity and an enticing texture. Their wine portfolio comprises twelve appellations, each expressing the unique terroir of its respective vineyard, aged in oak barrels that enhance the wines' flavor expressions.
The most prized wine comes from Puligny's Grand Cru Chevalier-Montrachet, where Michel personally planted the vines in 1970 using small explosives to penetrate the rocky terrain. This painstaking process yields highly mineral, extracted, and aromatic wines with remarkable presence. Among their standout Premier Cru vineyards, Les Chaumees Clos de la Truffiere is particularly noteworthy, its 80-year-old vines giving rise to intense, rich, and chalky wines. The Premier Cru Les Vergers, located just downslope, offers riper fruit flavors, a plush texture, and well-balanced acidity thanks to its deeper clay and gravelly limestone soils. The tiny parcel that produces the Premier Cru Clos de la Maltroie offers an elegant wine that's slightly firmer than the Champgains.
The Niellons also create a delightful Bourgogne Blanc from young vines near the winery, delivering a fresh, citrusy wine with great length. The use of sustainable practices, careful clone selection, and handpicked quality grapes fermented with natural yeasts underscore Domaine Michel Niellon's commitment to exceptional wines. Be it the extraordinary Bâtard-Montrachet or the high-quality Premier Cru Chassagne-Montrachet Clos st Jean, Niellon's wines consistently garner high praise and scores, cementing their position as a benchmark producer in Chassagne-Montrachet.
