The price for today’s Pinot Noir is fantastic by any measure, but I can’t help but imagine what the response would be if it had a Burgundy appellation on the label rather than Jura. It would be pandemonium. A red Burgundy with this kind of finesse, joyful drinkability, and genuine complexity is basically unheard-of at this price.
We often refer to the Jura, a fairy-tale mountain landscape only about an hour east of Beaune, as Burgundy’s “country cousin,” but today’s Pinot Noir from Frédéric Lornet raises the stakes. It may not be a Burgundy, but frankly, it may as well be, and I can only hope that $25 bottles of this quality are the “new normal” in the Jura—a place many wine drinkers still struggle to understand. Yes, the average Jura-grown Pinot Noir is a touch lighter and more ethereal than red Burgundy, but Lornet’s “Charles Rouget” bottling is a long way from average. Frédéric is cutting through outdated misconceptions by producing fresh, modern, deeply exciting wines. This Pinot took me entirely by surprise and I can’t wait to revisit it over the next five years. Think light and delicately fruity but firm and earthy—it’s tempting to compare this wine to Gevrey-Chambertin for its structure and minerality (similar iron-rich clay soils), but one look at the price will make you forget Burgundy altogether: This is one of the most memorable and distinguished under-$30 Pinot Noirs I’ve ever tried!
Frédéric is a bit of an anomaly in a region famous for grouchily resisting modernization. He’s farming traditional Juracien varieties but vinifying them in a decidedly modern way. Lornet’s winemaking is predicated on careful intervention, clean fermentations, and non-oxidative aging to bring terroir into focus. We’ve featured his Chardonnay on SommSelect as the perfect example of the ouillé, or “topped-up,” style of winemaking—salty, bright, and fruit-forward. This Pinot is similarly modern and named after another Juracien pioneer: Charles Rouget, a famed viticulturist and ampelographer first responsible for documenting over 40 different grape varieties growing in the Jura at the turn of the 20th century. He and Frédéric share a love for their region that inspires innovation. You can feel that in every sip of this 100 percent Pinot Noir—this wine was made by a rebel with a cause.
Frédéric’s deep roots in the Jura mean he can modernize without being divorced from his heritage. His grandfather, Eugene, was the first to make wine under the Lornet label in 1974, after 20 years of selling to a négociant (merchant-bottler). This kicked off the process by which the Lornet wines have risen to the forefront of the modern Jura movement. The domaine centers around a 13th century Cistercian abbey called L’Abbaye de la Boutière. The abbey’s creamy limestone walls are sandwiched between vineyards and a tangle of forest—a real fortress where Frédéric works tirelessly to express the remarkable variation of terroir found in his 16 different vineyard plots.
Today’s Pinot Noir comes from 30-year-old vines planted in rich clay, marl, and red rock soils that impart palpable minerality. The 2017 vintage was marked by a terrible frost in April: three consecutive days of subzero temperatures that greatly reduced yields (sometimes up to 60 percent) across the region. As a result, there’s less of Lornet’s Pinot than usual, but what was left was meticulously tended for optimal ripeness. Grapes were fully destemmed and fermented in oak foudres large enough to rent out as apartments in San Francisco. Daily cap management and gentle pumpovers last for the duration of a 10-day fermentation. This Pinot was aged for one year in oak barrels before bottling.
In the glass, the ’17 “Charles Rouget” is a limpid ruby with glimmers of pink that often mark a brand new Pinot Noir. I’d definitely recommend decanting for half an hour before serving in Burgundy stems—give this wine a moment to compose itself and you’ll be rewarded with pure concentrated fruit. This isn’t jammy or stewed in the slightest, though. Instead it’s a bright, borderline savory note of sappy cherry and split rosewood. There’s a touch of smoke and fresh herbs, but nothing too spicy or dense. The wine has an irresistible freshness that persists on the palate with pronounced minerality, softened slightly by forest strawberry notes. The medium body is structured by firm, fine tannins that linger on the palate for a long and mouth-watering finish. Keep it classic with this one: duck confit with a side of cherry sauce and a heaping bowl of creamy potatoes. One sip, one bite, and you’ll want to know what else is out there from the Jura, awaiting your discovery. In the meantime, stock up on this while you can!
