Today’s rare bundle grants you limited and affordable access into the culty world that is Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey. In record time, this Chardonnay mastermind has taken the world by storm and skyrocketed into the ranks of Burgundy’s super-elite. Our meager, once-per-year allocations are never enough to support a standalone offer so we spend our spare time horse-trading and improvising to make a multi-pack viable.
In terms of 21st century Burgundy, Pierre-Yves is easily one of the hottest, in-demand winemaking talents, and tasting a bottle (let alone two!) is an exceedingly rare treat. We consider PYCM’s Bourgogne and Hautes-Côtes de Beaune a best-in-class white Burgundy starter pack and his newest ’19s are as profoundly mineral and deeply textured as ever. The Bourgogne hails from a collection of parcels in Saint-Aubin and Puligny-Montrachet, and the “Au Bout du Monde” (“at the end of the world’) comes from a small site high up in the Côte de Beaune. These wines are loaded with laser-sharp precision, tension, and tremendous cellar appeal, so if you want some of Burgundy’s finest and most sought-after Chardonnay without breaking the bank, this is it!
Domaine Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey is relatively new on the scene, but its lineage is undeniably impressive: Winemaker Pierre-Yves Colin is the son of Marc Colin, and his wife, Caroline, is daughter to Jean-Marc Morey (both are highly regarded in the world of Burgundy). Pierre-Yves and Caroline represent modern-day Burgundian royalty and their wines are just as regal. After studying enology in Beaune, Pierre-Yves worked for his father at Domaine Marc Morey from 1994-2005, but he also learned under greats in Nôrthern Rhone, Languedoc, and the Loire Valley before setting up his own shop in 2006. He was able to do so with income generated from he and Caroline’s small négociant business started in 2001. Additionally, Pierre-Yves transferred over vineyard holdings given to him by his father to help launch his new label. Since then, everything they’ve touched has turned to gold and ubiquitous critical praise has followed.
In the vineyards, it’s all about sustainability: Pierre-Yves eschews the use of herbicides and opts to plow manually in an effort to further deepen the root system, which results in concentration and complexity. His “Bourgogne” in 2018 was sourced from four parcels located throughout the top villages of the Côte de Beaune—Puligny, Chassagne, Saint-Aubin, and Meursault. Today’s second bottling hails from Hautes-Côtes de Beaune, a higher-altitude appellation of Burgundy hugging the hillsides. “Au Bout du Monde ”is specifically sourced from a parcel around 1400 feet elevation just west of Chassagne and Saint-Aubin. Because of the different climate, harvest here typically happens a week later than Chassagne, so Pierre-Yves likes to bottle it separately to really highlight the nuances of this unique site.
In the winery, juice is pressed into larger 350-liter barrels (~10% new) rather than standard 228-liter Burgundy barrels, so as to impart less oak influence on the wine. After fermentation on native yeasts, the wine ages without any bâtonnage (lees stirring) to ensure a fresh, terroir-expressive wine. After 14 months in barrel, the final wines were transferred into stainless steel for a short period before bottling without fining and filtration. Oxygen is avoided as much as possible in order to retain the purity and reductive qualities of each wine.
Intricate, clean winemaking is always front and center in Pierre-Yves’ releases, as they reveal astonishing levels of tension and nerve that can only be shed with proper air exposure and/or years of cellaring. Perhaps more so than any other producer, PYCM requires a healthy decant in their youth: I suggest at least 30 minutes for the Bourgogne and 60+ for the HCDB but these are just guidelines. Use your best judgment and savor each bottle in large Burgundy stems over an entire evening, or two. Right now, the ’19 Bourgogne is the more accessible wine of the two, showcasing sublime, plush notes of yellow citrus and orchard fruits alongside brilliant surges of minerality. The ’19 Hautes-Côtes de Beaune is more in line with the PYCM bottlings I've come to love: It's reductive at the start, with struck match and steely flint dominating up front before giving way to electric aromas of salt-preserved lemon, peach, and lime blossoms. The palate delivers superb tension and nerve whereas the Bourgogne flaunts more ripe, mellow textures. Both are sensational wines but different in style—just a textbook example of Burgundy's nuanced and variegated terroir. Enjoy this extraordinary two-pack!
