While known first and foremost for some of the most soulful, structured, and idolized whites in the Côte de Beaune, Jean-Marc Pillot doesn’t get nearly enough credit for his spectacular red Burgundies—I’m certain today’s transcendent Santenay, from the sizzling ’17 vintage, will convert you for life. Among our absolute favorite Burgundy producers, Pillot consistently crafts wines that represent their terroirs with remarkable poise and depth.
As a fourth-generation vigneron, Jean-Marc has worked almost as many vintages as he’s been alive, and there’s a lot to show for it: He owns a staggering collection of Premier and Grand Cru vineyards, spread in a constellation throughout Chassagne, Puligny, and Meursault, as well as a tiny sliver of Pinot Noir in 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. Located just below Chassagne-Montrachet, his 1.4 hectares of vines here now hold a half-century of wisdom, and they perfectly capture the essence of this thoroughly underrated AOC. For me, each new release seems to shine brighter, richer, and more complex than the last. Mark my words: As long as this lush and exquisite Pinot Noir hovers around the $50 mark, it’ll (1) forever strike fear into $75-$100 Côte de Nuits bottlings and (2) keep me chasing after every new release.
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 Pillot’s stunning range of high-dollar appellations, Santenay flies a little lower on the radar. Good thing, too: more for us! This village 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. 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 lieu-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 that delivers generous perfume and wonderfully soft layers after a little time in bottle.
In Pillot’s cellar, these Pinot Noir grapes were mostly de-stemmed before a brief cold maceration (skin contact before fermentation begins). Alcoholic fermentation is low and slow—generally a full 12 days before the wine sleeps in neutral French oak for 12 months. Because Pillot is a master of building texture in his wines, he then allows the Pinot to be racked into stainless steel for an additional six months. His wines are bottled without filtration.
Pillot’s 2017 “Les Champs Claude'' is already in a prime drinking window at four years of age. This wine is never shy or reticent, and yet I’m constantly impressed by its “approachability” upon release. This is pedigreed red Burgundy to be sure, but it’s also unabashedly delicious and generously textured. It floods out of a bulbous Burgundy stem with lush notes of raspberry, spiced plum, ripe cherry, dried goji berry, redcurrant, underbrush, grated nutmeg, wet rock, damp moss, and finely crushed rose petal. It’s a soft and beautifully perfumed Pinot Noir, a far cry from the broodingly mineral Gevrey-Chambertins up north. The palate is exquisite and plush with ripe red-tinged fruits, a tight core of crushed minerals, and expertly contoured, fine-grained tannins. Decant this for 30 minutes and pair it with something succulent and saucy, like Moo Shu chicken with 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 5-8 years. Enjoy.
