This isn’t the first time (nor will it be the last) we sing Jean-Marc Pillot’s praises here at SommSelect. He is one of our favorite high-achieving Burgundy producers, consistently crafting wines that represent their terroirs with remarkable poise and depth. In tricky vintages, he outshines his class through sheer skill; and in landmark years like 2015, we’re blessed with rich, delicious Burgundies of incomparable quality for their price.
As a fourth-generation vigneron, Jean-Marc has worked almost as many vintages as he’s been alive. He owns and farms a staggering collection of Premier and Grand Cru vineyards, spread in a constellation throughout Chassagne, Puligny, Meursault, Remigny, and the source of today’s exquisite red, Santenay. And while you might not be as familiar with Santenay as with some of Pillot’s other holdings, “Les Champs Claude” will make sure you don’t forget it any time soon. This little lieut-dit (named site) is right near the border with Chassagne-Montrachet and shines more brightly than I thought possible. These 49-year-old vines capture the pure essence of a thoroughly underrated AOC, and every sip reminds me why great-value Burgundy is my Moby Dick; I’ll forever be chasing bottles like this one. Pillot’s perfect Pinot outperforms its modest price tag with such charisma that it literally restores my spirit. Drink up!
Jean-Marc Pillot first started working with his father Jean in 1985. After six years of collaboration, Jean-Marc flew solo for his first vintage with help from his wife, Nadine, and sister, Beatrice. He’s slowly accumulated vineyard holdings ever since, a veritable pantheon of enviable crus. The breadth of these holdings means he can really showcase the range of terroir in the Southern tier of the Cote-de-Beaune. Pillot is known for traditional viticultural practices, most notably intensive work in the vineyard to regulate the size and quality of his harvest. His vines are planted at a high density and never see herbicides—father Jean would be proud!
Among that stunning range of appellations, Santenay flies a little lower on the radar. Good thing, too: there’s more for us. It sits at the southern extremity of the Côte de Beaune, where both wine and healing thermal waters flow freely through a sumptuous landscape of rolling hills. The AOC was established in 1937 and produces mainly Pinot Noir. Pillot is best known for his white wines, although, in addition to this Santenay, he produces several bottlings of Chassagne-Montrachet Rouge, which is becoming increasingly rare. He sources the fruit for “Les Champs Claude” from 1.4 hectares of vines planted in 1970, tucked right up against the road dividing Santenay from Chassagne-Montrachet. But this lieut-dit doesn’t have any stage fright because of its illustrious neighbors. Every wine I’ve had from “Les Champs Claude” is at once sturdy and romantic—built on a foundation of limestone and marl but generously perfumed and wonderfully softened by a little time in bottle.
These Pinot Noir grapes were entirely destemmed before a brief cold maceration. Alcoholic fermentation is low and slow—generally a full 12 days before the wine sleeps in predominantly neutral oak for 12 months. Pillot is a master of building texture in his wines. He lets the Pinot sit on its lees during aging before it is racked into stainless steel for six final months. His wines are bottled without filtration.
This Santenay has a wonderfully deep color and shine, flashing a pink rim in an otherwise concentrated red glass. Jean-Marc’s signature aromatics unfurl in a cascade of rose petals, licorice, ripe cherry, and mushrooms. This is eminently enjioyable wine: your mouth is watering before bringing the glass to your lips. And when you do, notes of plum and sous-bois whisk away any doubts as to this being one of the most expressive and satisfying Santenays in the world. Flavors range from roasted tomatoes to cheerful forest strawberries. The texture is a testament to Pillot’s masterful cellar work—sleekly muscular and perfectly restrained. Those rustic tannins have been rolled to the finest velvet by four years in bottle. But still, there’s a tantalizing bead of minerality sitting at the center of this bottle and every sip seems to bring you closer to understanding what exactly it tastes like...but the wine’s gone before you can put your finger on it.
Decant this Pinot for 30 minutes before pouring into generous Burgundy stems and pairing with something succulent and saucy, like moo shu pork in warm mandarin pancakes. Order a feast of Chinese food, sit on the living room floor “picnic style,” and keep a second bottle close at hand. If you insist on cooking, try the attached adaptation and don’t be shy with the sauce. Most importantly, get a few bottles and keep them squirreled away for re-visiting over the next 5-7 years. It will not disappoint!
