Home › Wine Notes › Domaine Laroche
Domaine Laroche, Chablis Saint Martin 2018
WhiteFrance2018
By Daniel Min · Tasted 2020-02-16 · Published 2026-09-21 · Updated 2026-09-21
At a glance
In one line
3.5/5 — lower than Vivino's 3.8 average · world avg price US$30 · This wine ages in a cellar where, according to legend, Saint Martin's relics were hidden from Norman invaders in the 9th century.
One critic score is listed on Vivino — 87 points (Aug 2019, publication not named). Overseas retail: US$31.99–33.00 on wine.com (750ml, checked Sept 2026).
Market note: Overseas retail: US$31.99–33.00 (wine.com, Sept 2026).
Father's note — Daniel Min
Original author of the notes“나의 첫 샤블리. 샤블리 좋은건 아니라서 비린거랑 먹어야해야한데서. 여러가지 비린거랑 먹던 중 요즘 가격 내린 킹크랩이랑 먹었는데 너무 맛있어요. 굴에서 꽃이 피듯 킹크랩에서 꽃향이. 샤블리 좋아요.”
Show original
“minerals citrus lemon stone 나의 첫 샤블리~ 샤블리 좋은건 아니라서 비린거랑 먹어야해야한데서~~ 여러가지 비린거랑먹던중 요즘 가격 내린 킹크랩이랑 먹었는데~~ 넘 맛있어요~~^^ 굴에서 꽃이피듯 킹크랩에서 꽃향이~~^^ 샤블리 좋아요~~”
What I learned today: some wines speak less through fruit than through the ground beneath it.
After closing: twenty-four glasses. I line them up on the counter and polish them one by one. It was Monday, so the guests left early, and Minjae stayed to the end beside me holding a cloth (he did not polish).
The last glass was the one I'd poured Chablis into that evening. Even rinsed, a little scent clung to the rim. Lemon, green apple, wet stone. My hand stopped on the cloth. Deep winter when I was twenty-one, the kitchen full of the smell of the sea. A huge king crab in the middle of the table, Father eating a piece and raising his glass at me. I don't know what the bottle was.
Master Seo took my glass, held it to the backlight, and began to talk. At thirty he left the hotel and spent two harvests as a picker in Burgundy's vineyards. "Chablis used to be sea. Walk the rows and shells come up on your shoes." When he talks about vineyards, it's as if his hands remember first. Father's note calls it 'my first Chablis', with this line: "Like flowers blooming from oysters, a floral scent from the king crab."
Midnight. All twenty-four shone. What I learned today: some wines speak less through fruit than through the ground beneath it.
What this wine is
Chablis sits two and a half hours southeast of Paris, geographically apart from the rest of Burgundy's white wine country. What defines it is what lies under the vines: Kimmeridgian limestone from the late Jurassic, laid down when this entire region was seabed roughly 150 million years ago, still holding the fossilized shells of a tiny oyster (Exogyra virgula). There's a saying that Chablis doesn't announce its terroir loudly, it leaves the evidence on the table — and that's exactly the character this wine has, speaking through acidity and precise minerality rather than fruit.
Domaine Laroche's aging cellar is called L'Obédiencerie, a building with more than a thousand years of history, once tended by monks who are said to have built the vineyards' reputation. The Saint Martin cuvée's name comes from a specific episode tied to that cellar. Saint Martin of Tours — the 4th-century figure famous for cutting his cloak in half to share with a freezing beggar — died in 397, and his relics were venerated in Tours for centuries afterward. But as the threat of Norman (Viking) invasions grew, the monks of Tours decided to move the relics somewhere safer, and in 877 AD they carried them to one of their outlying properties: this same Obédiencerie in Chablis. Laroche's own official materials and an independent source (waynebuyrite.com) both cite 877 AD, and since those two independent sources agree, I'm treating the story as reliable enough to include. Domaine Laroche marks Saint Martin's feast day every November in honor of this history.
What the world says
On Vivino, this 2018 vintage carries 2,625 ratings averaging 3.8 — 239 at five stars, 1,274 at four, 1,010 at three, a fairly smooth distribution. Across all vintages combined (18,048 ratings), it averages 3.9, ranking 225,624th among 3.37 million French wines. By vintage, 2005 leads at 4.1, and 2022 matches it among more recent years; 2018's 3.8 sits somewhere in the ordinary middle.
The flavor keywords are led almost neck-and-neck by a stone fruit and apple group — green apple, apple, pear — at 964 mentions and citrus and lemon at 912, with an earth group led by minerals right behind at 810. That minerals note alone showing up 810 times is the tasting notes essentially proving out the brand's own story about this soil.
"Nice Chablis by Domaine Laroche, very clean and clear, minerality, stone, citrus, lime, grapefruit, fresh, perfectly matched with urchin and caviar!!" — Vivino review, May 2019, 4.0 stars
"Apples, lemon, lime and stone with a slightly creamy overtone. Great acidity and minerality. Punches above its price point." — Vivino review, May 2021, 4.0 stars
Only one critic score is listed on Vivino: 87 points (Aug 2019, publication not named).
How I drank it
16 February 2020, 3.5 stars. I noted minerals, citrus, lemon, stone, and gave this bottle a particular significance: my first-ever Chablis. My note explains that I'd heard Chablis is best with something "fishy," so I'd been trying it with various seafood, and this particular night I paired it with king crab, which happened to be cheap at the time. I closed with an image — the way flowers seem to bloom from an oyster, the same thing happened for me with the king crab — and one simple line: "I like Chablis."
That pairing wasn't luck, it's logic — Chablis's Kimmeridgian limestone soil itself holds fossilized oyster shells, which is exactly why sommeliers and wine writers repeat the seafood pairing so consistently; it's less a matter of taste than of geology. Discovering that logic firsthand, on my very first Chablis, matters more here than the 3.5 score — "I like Chablis" is really the point of this note. Set against the other whites covered on this site since, this first impression reads as pure, uncomplicated curiosity.
Where this wine shows up
Fearing Norman (Viking) invasions, monks from Tours are said to have moved Saint Martin's relics to L'Obédiencerie, one of their properties in Chablis, for safekeeping. Laroche's own official materials and an independent source both cite the year 877 AD. Domaine Laroche ages this cuvée in that same cellar and marks Saint Martin's feast day every November.
Domaine Laroche official — Saint Martin's Story · Wayne Buy Rite — Saint Martin and the Soul of Chablis
Artwork and stills are not reproduced for copyright reasons; scenes are summarised.
Vivino community data
2018 vintage rating distribution (2625 ratings, average 3.8)
| 5★ | 239 (9%) | |
| 4★ | 1274 (49%) | |
| 3★ | 1010 (38%) | |
| 2★ | 76 (3%) | |
| 1★ | 26 (1%) |
Most-mentioned aromas
| Family | Mentions | Top keywords |
|---|---|---|
| Stone fruit & apple | 964 | green apple 368 · apple 213 · pear 191 · peach 59 · melon 39 |
| Citrus | 912 | citrus 416 · lemon 266 · grapefruit 92 · lime 68 · lemon zest 24 |
| Earth | 810 | minerals 401 · honey 139 · stone 109 · chalk 42 · flint 27 |
| Oak | 241 | butter 125 · oak 76 · vanilla 27 · caramel 4 · cedar 2 |
| Vegetal | 122 | straw 35 · grass 24 · gooseberry 22 · asparagus 13 · hay 12 |
| Yeast & cream | 108 | cream 45 · cheese 27 · yeast 11 · oil 10 · banana 7 |
| Tropical fruit | 83 | pineapple 44 · tropical 14 · kiwi 7 · passion fruit 6 · mango 5 |
Structure: Acidity 4.0/5 · Intensity 2.9/5 · Sweetness 1.3/5
Average by vintage (all vintages: 18048 ratings, average 3.9)
| Vintage | Average | Ratings |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 4.0 | 50 |
| 2024 | 3.9 | 275 |
| 2023 | 4.0 | 1035 |
| 2022 | 4.1 | 2142 |
| 2021 | 3.9 | 1313 |
| 2020 | 3.9 | 852 |
| 2019 | 3.9 | 1409 |
| 2018 | 3.8 | 2625 |
| 2017 | 3.8 | 1005 |
| 2016 | 3.8 | 1000 |
| 2015 | 3.7 | 1292 |
| 2014 | 3.7 | 707 |
| 2013 | 3.7 | 630 |
| 2012 | 3.8 | 970 |
| 2011 | 3.8 | 409 |
| 2010 | 3.7 | 179 |
| 2009 | 3.9 | 115 |
| 2008 | 3.7 | 81 |
| 2006 | 3.9 | 44 |
| 2005 | 4.1 | 40 |
Other wines Father scored 3.5 →
Read next
Swipe for more →
Similar styleDomaine Leroy Bourgogne Aligoté 2014
France · Burgundy★★★★☆
Similar styleChâteau La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc 2018
France · Bordeaux★★★★☆
Similar styleLucien Le Moine Meursault-Charmes Premier Cru 2018
France · Burgundy★★★★☆
Similar styleMaison Leroy Saint-Aubin Premier Cru Le Charmois Blanc 2002
France · Burgundy★★★★★
Same grapeEtienne Sauzet, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru 2012
France · Burgundy★★★★½
Same grapeEtienne Sauzet, Montrachet Grand Cru 2012
France · Burgundy★★★★★
Same grapeAntinori, Castello della Sala 'Cervaro della Sala' 2016
Italy★★★★½
Same grapeDeutz, Brut Classic (NV)
France · Champagne★★★☆☆
Same grapeTaittinger, Brut Réserve (NV)
France · Champagne★★★★☆
Same grapeLouis Roederer, Brut Premier (NV)
France · Champagne★★★★☆
Same grapeMartelet de Cherisey, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru 'Hameau de Blagny' 2016
France · Burgundy★★★★½
Same grapeKracher, Noble Reserve Trockenbeerenauslese (NV)
Austria · Burgenland★★★★☆More from Burgundy, France
Swipe for more →
BurgundyDomaine Leroy Bourgogne Aligoté 2014
★★★★☆BurgundyLucien Le Moine Meursault-Charmes Premier Cru 2018
★★★★☆BurgundyMaison Leroy Saint-Aubin Premier Cru Le Charmois Blanc 2002
★★★★★
BurgundyBenoît Ente Puligny-Montrachet Premier Cru Clos de la Truffière 2018
★★★½☆
BurgundyArnaud Ente Bourgogne Chardonnay 2015
★★★★½
BurgundyDugat-Py Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes 2005
★★★★☆
BurgundyMichel Noëllat Vosne-Romanée Premier Cru Les Suchots 2014
★★★★☆
BurgundyLucien Le Moine Chambolle-Musigny Premier Cru Les Hauts Doix 2016
★★★★★
BurgundyDomaine Coche-Dury Meursault 2013
★★★★★
BurgundyLucien Le Moine Vosne-Romanée Premier Cru Les Suchots 2015
★★★★½Explore
Bottles Father gave five stars
Only the wines Father scored a perfect 5
→
Wines in manga, film and history
Bottles that show up in manga, film and history
→
Wines you can buy at the supermarket
Wines actually bought at the supermarket
→Frequently asked questions
What kind of wine is Domaine Laroche Chablis Saint Martin 2018?
A 100% Chardonnay white from Chablis, Burgundy, France. Its name comes from an episode tied to Laroche's aging cellar, L'Obédiencerie, where Saint Martin's relics are said to have been hidden in 877 AD. Vivino: 2,625 ratings averaging 3.8, with one listed critic score of 87 (Aug 2019).
How much does it cost?
Overseas retail is US$31.99–33.00 (wine.com, checked Sept 2026). World average price is still pending (US$30 per 750ml ex-tax (Wine-Searcher, Sept 2026)).
What food pairs well with it?
Vivino users suggest pork, shellfish, rich fish (salmon, tuna) and mild soft cheese. Its Kimmeridgian limestone soil contains fossilized oyster shells, which is the classic reason for its pairing with seafood, especially oysters.
Where does the name "Saint Martin" come from?
Saint Martin of Tours died in 397, and his relics were venerated in Tours for centuries. As Norman (Viking) invasions threatened, monks are said to have moved his relics in 877 AD to L'Obédiencerie in Chablis, now Domaine Laroche's own cellar. The house honors this history every November on Saint Martin's feast day and named this cuvée after him.
Links & sources
View on Vivino · Prices on Wine-Searcher
- Vivino — wine page and community data
- Domaine Laroche official — Saint Martin's Story
- Domaine Laroche official — Obédiencerie and Saint-Martin
- Wayne Buy Rite — Saint Martin and the Soul of Chablis
- Wine.com — Domaine Laroche Chablis Saint Martin 2018
Read next
Swipe for more →
Similar styleDomaine Leroy Bourgogne Aligoté 2014
France · Burgundy★★★★☆Similar styleChâteau La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc 2018
France · Bordeaux★★★★☆Same grapeEtienne Sauzet, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru 2012
France · Burgundy★★★★½Same grapeEtienne Sauzet, Montrachet Grand Cru 2012
France · Burgundy★★★★★Same grapeAntinori, Castello della Sala 'Cervaro della Sala' 2016
Italy★★★★½Same grape