Athénaïs Côte d'Auxerre "Céleste" AOC 2020

A Pinot Noir that lets the fruit lead while still holding structure. At 12.0% vol. it stays light-footed, freshness carries the whole wine, and the drinkability is unrestrained. Not a wine for pondering, but one you can genuinely enjoy.

The grapes come from the Côte d'Auxerre in eastern Burgundy. Château de Béru itself lies in eastern Chablis, a Renaissance estate with a 16th-century sundial, whose vineyards lay fallow after the phylloxera catastrophe. Èric and Laurence de Béru replanted them in the late 1980s and restored the old vineyard walls. Since 2004, Athénaïs de Béru has run the estate and converted it to organic, later biodynamic farming: working with horses instead of heavy machinery, extensive cover crops between the rows, home-made preparations.

Single-varietal Pinot Noir, vinified dry. In the cellar, the philosophy is one of minimal intervention: careful selection, gentle pressing, spontaneous fermentation with the vineyard's natural yeasts. The timing of racking and bottling is determined through regular tastings, not technical parameters.

The nose opens with sour cherry, rhubarb and hibiscus, followed by small blueberries, cranberries and raspberries. Lemon balm and sorrel sharpen the freshness, a touch of white pepper lends a cedary, citrusy spice. On the palate the fruit remains deep, framed by delicate floral notes of hollyhock and hibiscus. The tannins are finely and densely woven, giving the wine structure without ever weighing it down.

The wine is released under Les vins d'Athénaïs, Athénaïs de Béru's line. The label carries the Demeter logo.