Alain Mathias turned vigneron in 1982 setting up a cellar outside Epineuil, close to Tonnerre in an old quarry. Here he made a little Bourgogne and a little Chablis, and worked as closely to the soil as he could. He turned organic in 2013, having worked in this way for most of his life. In 2015 Carole and Bastien Mathias joined the domaine. They share the respect Alain had for his vines and have brought their own fresh ideas and new techniques to the cellar, including replacing tanks with amphora, replacing old oak with large format and using terracotta jars for 'elevage'. They want to age their wines, and for them with all the work they do in the vineyards, it is the least they can do to create the best space for them to age the wines in order to ensure they reflect the ongoing and hard work that has been put into them.
Chardonnay. The .55 ha vineyard lies in the vllage of Beine, on the western side of Chablis. The steep slopes here leave their mark on the wines produced, Vaux de Vey has a very strong identity, as does the the Jurassique soil over Kimmeridgien limestone. The slope is south facing, with an easterly slant and is always worked by hand. The fruit is pressed in pneumatic presses over a long period, and gravity fed to settling tanks. After racking off the gross lees the wine is fermented for 12 days in 50% clay jars and 50% Futs de Chene. Ageing is in the same containers, and then assembled and left for 6 months in stainless steel prior to bottling.