JEAN-CLAUDE BACHELET

Benoit and Jean-Baptiste Bachelet

Wisdom and modesty do not exclude excellence, at least that's how one feels when meeting Benoit and Jean-Baptiste Bachelet, who took over their father Jean-Claude's estate in the early 2000s, in Saint-Aubin in the Côte de Beaune. The Bachelet name is well-known on the "côte," and the family's genealogical tree dates back to 1648, with records of a Pierre Bachelet. However, the true starting point is much more recent, with the beginning of estate bottling and Jean-Claude's arrival at the family estate in 1965. Jean-Claude quickly engaged in developing single vineyard cuvées, still rare at the time. Gradually but steadily, Jean-Claude elevated the estate to among the finest in Saint-Aubin. Since their arrival, his sons Benoit and Jean-Baptiste have proceeded with gradual evolutions, such as stopping the use of herbicides in 2001 and transitioning the estate to biodynamics.

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Le Puy de l'Ours is a thrilling newcomer in the winemaking scene, established in 2021 by Jean Orsoni and Juliette Puyperoux at the heart of Savigny les Beaune. Born out of a combination of their surnames, the estate's inception is rooted in their shared journey. Having met in their native city of Paris, where they both grew up and worked, Juliette pursued studies in business before delving into the world of wines and spirits with Rothschild France Distribution. Simultaneously, she embarked on a distance learning program for a Professional Agricultural Certificate, gaining hands-on experience through internships across vineyards in France and South Africa. Meanwhile, Jean's academic path led him to Paris Dauphine University and a specialized Master's degree at ENA, now working for the Public Investment Bank, which facilitates his regular commutes between Paris and Beaune

The foundations of their work are simple yet precise. The two brothers spend an impressive amount of time in the vineyard, still personally overseeing key steps: rigorous pruning, shoot thinning to limit yields, trellising... 2010 marks another significant milestone with the construction of a new winery. Here too, the work is precise, reflecting the brothers' practical farming sense: eliminating transport steps, handling, pumping, and developing gravity-based work until bottling, etc... The trade secrets of Benoit and Jean-Baptiste Bachelet thus echo the fundamentals of the Burgundian winemaker's craft: a lot of work in the vineyards, harvesting ripe grapes as a prerequisite for terroir expression, meticulous vinification and aging, lasting nearly two years. The vines have been cultivated organically (certified since 2023) and biodynamically since 2012, all on a magnificent 9.75-hectare vineyard spread across several great plots on Chassagne-Montrachet (including their iconic Bienvenues Bâtard Montrachet), Puligny-Montrachet and Saint-Aubin. 75% of the family's production is Chardonnay, but the remaining 25% of Pinot Noir is also notable, featuring a lively, juicy profile with prominent red berry flavors.

Vinification is pragmatic: once the grapes are harvested, sorted, and lightly crushed, the pressing is long. The musts are quickly cooled in tanks and settled the following morning to ferment entirely in barrels. Increasingly rare practice, the estate ages the wines for a long time, for two years on lees. The wines are racked from barrels in February-March, blended in tanks, and bottled in July. This tank phase with very little lees is important. The wines gain stability, finesse, freshness, allowing the elimination of fining agents. This 18-month aging in barrels on lees without racking allows for better integration of wood and purity. During the first winter in barrels, the wine works, undergoes alcoholic and malolactic fermentations, and structures itself. During the second winter, it refines on its lees to stabilize in tanks. The estate's wines are rich, structured, generous yet with freshness, a balance to better express each terroir with a fantastic ageing potential on each cuvee.

The inaugural vintage of Puy de l'Ours in 2021 yielded 5000 bottles, with the remaining grapes still sold as fruit. Valuing their old vines, the duo aims for preservation, opting for replanting only when necessary. Their winemaking philosophy emphasizes minimal intervention to faithfully express their terroir, with restrained use of new oak and extraction during maceration. This approach yields reds with a luscious jammy and juicy red fruit profile complemented by soft and silky tannins, while the whites exude floral notes, a gentle press, and subtle oak influence. All the wines are naturally low in sulfur.

Impressively diverse, from the intriguing Godeaux vinified as Blanc de Noirs (direct press of Pinot Noir aged 6 months in stainless steel tank) to the sumptuously velvety Savigny Les Folettes (whole-cluster vinified), Puy de l'Ours already stands out as one of the most captivating new estates in Côte de Beaune, particularly in Savigny les Beaune, an esteemed terroir currently in the spotligh