It has been a very long time since the wine world has had an outstanding new Puligny Domaine emerge from the Côte d’Or firmament. Thanks to the fresh-faced Bachelet brothers, we now do. This young duo not only have Puligny holdings where they are fast establishing themselves as a benchmark, they also make delicious Santenay and are setting new quality standards in Maranges, an appellation rarely sighted on our shores. Bachelet Monnot was only formed in 2005 but it has been cranking out the hits from the get-go, with each subsequent release outdoing the last.
Maranges and Santenay may not be names that roll off the tongue of Burgophiles in the same way Gevrey, Vosne and Chambolle do. However, it is fascinating to see what a new pair of well-travelled eyes, an innate understanding of each vineyard’s terroir and instinctive winegrowing talent can produce, regardless of whether the vineyards have famous monikers. In terms of the winemaking, when a producer lavishes that same care and attention on his Bourgogne Rouge as his Batard Montrachet, you can expect to taste some pretty amazing values. The Bachelet brothers adopt an unforced, labour-intensive approach to achieve their goals of naturally balanced and precise wines. All soils are ploughed, herbicides are eschewed and strict de-budding is carried out to curb yields. All grapes are hand-picked at optimum ripeness.
