By Bruce Neyers

Saturday 6th June, 2026

2024 Chardonnay ‘304’ – An alternative way to look at fine Chardonnay

I remember clearly that first time Tadeo accompanied me to Chablis. When I worked with Kermit, that part of French wine country was always among my favorite visits, both for the wines and the scenery, but I have to include the vignerons as well. Their hands rough and calloused from years of working with the vines, just shaking hands with them was a sign that you were in a place where farming was an important part of life. The weather is cold in Chablis – the coldest region in France where Chardonnay is grown – and the fields of vines seem almost hostile. Who would dare make wine from a region this uncomfortable for man? Make wine they do, though, some of the greatest in the world. After the lengthy tasting in the cellars of Roland Lavantureux and the visit to the vineyards of Domaine Raveneau, we drove back to our hotel in Beaune. Tadeo was quiet, keeping to himself in our 7-passenger van, not speaking, despite the enthusiasm of the group about the wines we had just tasted. Early in the tasting I had noticed him off to the side, talking with David Lavantureux, Roland’s youngest son who had visited the US the previous year and had met Tadeo during his visit. Tadeo was grilling David on the production of Chablis, I later learned. He had questions about receiving the grapes, for example. How they were pressed, and how the juice was moved. He had as many questions, it seemed, as David had for him when he visited our winery in the Napa Valley a year earlier. The ride to the hotel was about an hour so we had very little time before we left for dinner at the bistro which was within walking distance. At dinner, I sat next to Tadeo and asked him why he was so withdrawn after the tasting. The tasting was magnificent, he told me, and so were those wines. He thought he could make a wine similar to those we tasted. He knew of a vineyard in Sonoma Carneros that was one of the coldest Chardonnay vineyards in northern California, and it sits against the Napa County border, in eastern Carneros, so the soil is rocky. So began our journey with Chardonnay ‘304’. New processing techniques were required. First, to keep the solids content low – along with the harsh phenolics – the grapes in Chablis are not crushed, rather they go direct to press. Secondly, the wines are fermented in containers that won’t allow for wood extraction. Tadeo uses a combination of Stainless-Steel tanks – formerly known as ‘304s’ – and neutral wood foudré from Austria. Because of the growing conditions, the grapes are high in natural acidity, as well as minerality from the rocky terrain. The finished wine is crisp, fresh, and engaging. It’s brightly colored with a refreshing finish that makes it easy to drink as an aperitif or with a meal. Chablis is famous for some of the best ‘simple food’ in France. Little is done in the kitchen to take your eyes off the wine. One dish I remember having there with pleasure was Cold Vichyssoise Soup. See Barbara’s recipe below.

Vichyssoise – Cold Leek and Potato Soup

Ingredients

• 3 cups leeks, approximately 6 leeks, white part only, cleaned and sliced crosswise into ¼-inch pieces
• 3 cups Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 ½ quarts chicken or vegetable stock
• ½ to 1 cup of whipping cream
• Crystal Diamond Kosher salt
• 3 tablespoons of minced chives for garnish

Preparation

1. Simmer the vegetables in stock until tender.
2. Purée the soup in an electric blender or through a food mill and then through a fine sieve.
3. Stir in the cream. Season to taste and chill the soup.
4. Serve in chilled soup bowls or cups and garnish each bowl with minced chives.