As Burgundy lovers broaden their horizons, the top growers of the Côte Chalonnaise are finally getting the recognition their wines deserve. It’s not that the region’s stars are going out cap in hand for more business―trying to eke out a larger allocation out of Vincent Dureuil is like trying to pull Excalibur from the stone. As the finest grower in Montagny, Stéphane Aladame is having a hard enough time keeping his domestic clients happy, let alone allocating wine to new export markets. Stéphane has earned an outstanding reputation among France’s top restaurant buyers and recently told us he has had to close his books to new markets and retail clients. All this is to say, with Stéphane’s apologies, we didn’t get anywhere near the quantity of wine we requested. We might have better luck with the higher-yielding 2022 vintage. Montagny’s claim to fame in fine wine circles is its ability to make the most Chablis-like wines of the Côte Chalonnaise. Jasper Morris MW explains that Montagny is “quite unlike the other whites of the Côte Chalonnaise. There is a lively, fresh aspect that heads at least part of the way towards the marine character of Chablis, without the same oyster shells in the soils.” Stéphane himself describes the style as closer to Chablis than the Côte d’Or, in part due to the high limestone content—from the Liassic and Triassic periods that predate the Jurassic soils of the Côte d’Or—but also the shallow nature of Montagny’s soils. The vine’s roots do not have far to go before tapping into the fossil-rich rock. Given the rocky nature of his terroirs, Stéphane prefers to work with neutral 350-litre barrels supported by stainless steel for his racier and younger-vine cuvées. There is no new oak in the cellar, and the wines are made without any additions other than a smidge of sulphur, although none exceed 25 mg/L. In a nutshell, Stéphane’s wines are not your safe-and-pleasant regional stereotypes but subtle and elegant, top-drawer Chalonnaise wines with the stamp of quality grower street-cred. And, while much of Burgundy has entered a complicated relationship with value, the pricing here remains as refreshing as the whites themselves.