Grapes: Aligote
Region: Burgundy, France
Vintage: 2023
Viticulture: Biodynamic
Soils: Limestone + Clay
Yeasts: Native
Vinification: The harvest is carried out by hand with transport in crates in order to keep the grapes whole and intact. The white grapes are crushed and then pressed as soon as they arrive in the winery. The must is put in vats for 2 to 3 days before being taken down to the cellar in old oak barrels for alcoholic and malolactic fermentation which lasts, depending on the vintage, between one and ten months.
Aging: At the end of alcoholic fermentation, the wine is drawn and assembled with the press and aged in barrels in the cellar for 6 to 14 months depending on the vintage. All wines have only one racking before bottling.
Fining or Filtering: None
Notes from the Importer: Dominique Derain started his career making wine barrels but decided, instead, to study winemaking in Beaune. In 1988 he and his wife Catherine purchased 5.5 hectares of vineyards in Saint-Aubin just south of Beaune and began tending the vines biodynamically and making their wines in a non-interventionist way as well.
The Saint-Aubin appellation is one of the hidden secrets of Burgundy because the vineyards border those of the premier crus of Chassagne-Montrachet and Puligny-Montrachet but do not command anywhere near their price.
This domaine has now been purchased by Julien Altaber and Carole Schwab of Domaine Sextant who will continue making the wines in the same style. Julien, of course, has been assisting Dominique in his cellars for over 10 years so knows each of the wines in detail.
The wines are certified biodynamic by Ecocert and have been certified since 1989.
