Domaine Jean-Marc Pillot Chassagne-Montrachet Rouge 1er Cru "Clos St-Jean" 2010

Domaine Jean-Marc Pillot is a wine producer based in Chassagne-Montrachet, in Burgundy's Côte de Beaune subregion. It is particularly associated with white wines from the Chardonnay grape, although it also makes reds from Pinot Noir in both Chassagne and neighboring Santenay. The estate is formally known as Domaine Jean Pillot. Jean-Marc, whose name features more prominently on the labels, took over from his father Jean in 1991. There are around 11 hectares (27 acres) of estate vineyards that provide about two-thirds of production, with purchased grapes providing the rest. The vineyard holdings are spread through Chassagne-Montrachet with parcels also in Puligny-Montrachet, Santenay and Meursault. Pillot's highlights are its holdings in several Chassagne-Montrachet Premier Cru plots, including Cailleret, Morgeot Les Fairendes (both red and white), Les Vergers and Les Chevenottes. Jean-Marc Pillot uses traditional vineyard practices, with dense plantings and debudding, leaf removal and occasional green harvests to limit crop size. The vineyards are ploughed and no herbicides are used. All harvests are carried out by hand. Most of the white wines are fermented and aged in barrel, with up to 30 percent new oak depending on the vintage and appellation. They are aged on fine lees for 12 months then racked out of the barrel into stainless steel tanks for six months to settle naturally and remove the need for cold stablization. Pinot Noir is destemmed and undergoes a short cold maceration prior to fermentation, with daily punchdowns in the first week, then pumpovers for the remaining time. The red wines are aged for 12 months in oak followed by six months in stainless steel. Unusually, each barrel is made a combination of staves from different French forests to give a consistent, complex result.

Tasting Profile