Description
Jean-Marc Pillot took over from his father, Jean, in 1991. His ambition was to perpetuate the family tradition based on the same uncompromising standards but also develop it and take it to the next step. He immediately breathed a new energetic life into this eponymous estate: increasing its surface area, expanding its vineyard holdings to 12 hectares, and developing the bottling line. At the head of a 12-hectare estate, he offers a superb range of 1er crus in the village of Chassagne-Montrachet.
The production is split roughly 50/50 between reds and whites.
Jean-Marc’s number one priority is to respect the terroir he has inherited. The soil is ploughed all year long. Organic fertilisers are adapted to each vine’s needs and the plot’s specific nature. Sustainable methods are used to fight against fungal diseases with maximum respect for the vines and their environment. Jean-Marc lavishes great care and attention on his vines: March pruning, leaf stripping, green harvesting in summer, and manual picking account for quality grapes that are essential for making great wine.
The wines are not racked and are low in sulphites. The wines reflect their terroir of origin very well and assert themselves in a well-established Chassagne style: intense, concentrated, with a beautiful
management of oak and with plenty of character.
His youngest son, Antonin, joined the family winery during the harvest of 2019. At first, he spent much time observing and only started bringing suggestions and ideas in 2020. One of these ideas was to harvest earlier, which they did in the harvest of 2020. A big move was to start the conversion to organic in 2021.
We were thrilled to hear that Antonin was voted late last year a rising star at only 26 by Bourgogne Aujourd’hui – a highly regarded wine magazine. We have been the Agents of Jean and Jean-Marc Pillot
since 1992 and consider Jean-Marc a gifted winemaker and a long-life friend. So, we feel incredibly proud of him and Antonin- and winning this accolade makes it even more of an achievement as Antonin has proved himself in such little time.
When we asked Jean-Marc a couple of years ago about environmental certifications, he said: “le jeune s’en occupera”-the young man will look after it -knowing very well that it was close to Antonin’s heart.
Antonin, just like his family, is very level-headed, grounded, and humble. He is conscious that he joined an established Domaine, run by several generations of great winemakers and grateful for it. So, with this attitude, we do not doubt that he will have a very promising future running the family Domaine and will make his mark in Chassagne-Montrachet and the wine world.
Grape
100% Pinot Noir
Vineyard & Vinification Note
Jean-Marc’s number one priority is to respect the terroir he has inherited. The soil is ploughed all year long. Organic fertilisers are adapted to the needs of each vine and the specific nature of each plot. Sustainable methods are used to fight against fungal diseases with maximum respect for the vines and their environment. A true believer in the saying that “great wine is made in the vineyard”, Jean-Marc lavishes great care and attention on his vines: March pruning, green harvesting, and manual picking account for quality grapes that are absolutely essential for making great wine.
The harvest is done by hand. As soon as they are cut, the bunches are brought to the vat room and put whole into the pneumatic press. The juice goes from there to the underground cellar via gravity flow and is put into oak barrels, 30% of which are new. The wines age there under ideal conditions for 12 months after alcoholic and malolactic fermentation. Starting in 2005, Jean-Marc decided that the wines would benefit from longer ageing. They now spend 6 months in stainless steel vats before bottling for improved stabilisation and efficient natural clarification
Vegan.
Tasting Note
Plenty of soft ripe blackberry, cherry, and raspberry fruit with a touch of earth and leather.
Food Pairing
Great with grilled meat, game and hard mature cheeses.
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