Le Finage (2020)

About this wine

Le Finage is 100% Chardonnay from Chablis, grown on the region’s famous Kimmeridgian soils, the ancient seabed that helps explain Chablis’ salty, shell like mineral character. The 2020 shows a bright citrus core, think lemon zest and lemon oil, with ripe pear following close behind. In the background you will pick up white flowers and a light almond note that reads more like crushed almond than sweetness. On the palate it stays brisk and focused, with a chalky, wet stone feel that keeps the fruit tasting fresh and lifted. La Chablisienne began as a growers’ cooperative in 1923, and this bottling is meant to be their clear, everyday snapshot of the whole Chablis appellation in a single glass.

About the grape

Chardonnay originated in the vineyards of Burgundy where it became the dominant white grape and was long selected for its ability to reflect place, here in Chablis it is planted on Kimmeridgian limestone soils rich in fossilized shell fragments that shape its mineral character. In this bottling La Chablisienne works with vines averaging around 20 years old planted at relatively high densities of 5500 to 6500 vines per hectare, a practice that limits vigor and concentrates flavors. The cooperative sources fruit from across the Chablis communes with varied exposures, so the single varietal Le Finage expresses a blend of site influences rather than a single parcel signature. At the winery the juice is racked cold and fermented and raised in stainless tanks with careful lees contact and restrained malolactic activity to preserve Chardonnay brightness and the clarity of its terroir expression.

Quick facts

• 🏡 Le Finage is made by La Chablisienne, a cooperative founded in 1923 that still groups roughly 300 growers, so the bottle carries nearly a century of shared local know‑how.
• 🗺️ The cuvée is assembled from parcels across all the Chablis communes, so it tastes like a little map of the appellation rather than a single vineyard bottling.
• 🐚 The Chardonnay comes from Kimmeridgian limestone soils, which give the wine its classic ‘broken seashell’ mineral character that many tasters notice.
• 🏅 The 2020 Le Finage earned a high-profile 92-point review for its lemon‑verbena, green apple and chalky mineral notes, marking it as a standout village‑level Chablis.
• 👑 La Chablisienne produces roughly a quarter to a third of Chablis and also oversees rare Grand Cru sites like Château Grenouilles, so Le Finage benefits from techniques developed at the top end of the region.

Palate profile

Producer

La Chablisienne was founded in 1923 by a group of local winegrowers led by Abbé Balitrand, created to help producers withstand difficult economic times between the world wars. The cooperative established a house style by asking members to deliver musts rather than finished wines, which gives it detailed control over vinification and parcel traceability. Over time La Chablisienne expanded its holdings, notably acquiring Château Grenouilles, and today manages roughly twelve hundred hectares across the Chablis appellations, from Petit Chablis to Grand Cru. It represents around two hundred and fifty grower families, is a leading exporter of Chablis, and has received international awards for its white wines.