Domaine Barat 32 Items

Joelle & Michel Barat are descended from five generations of wine growers. The pair launched their own label in 1972, and in 2000, their children, Angele & Ludovic, joined them in running the family estate.

Domaine Barat is located about a mile outside of the city of Chablis in the village of Milly. The vineyards are managed by Ludovic, who works with organic, herbicide-free fertilizers and viticulture practices, and green pruning. The estate's coveted vines are planted on South-facing slopes, on Kimmeridgian and Portlandian marl formed millions of years ago during the Jurassic era when the sea covered Chablis. Even today, the mineral-rich clay-limestone soil remains plush with marine fossils, which lend an intense and vivacious minerality and freshness to the wines.

Thanks to new methods that reduce frost damage and make wine making cleaner, the region of Chablis has been on the upswing since the 1960's. In the last ten years, production by small Domaines has increased greatly as has its popularity. With its characteristic steely acidity, flintiness and mineral qualities, Chablis is some of the greatest white wine in the world.