Chambertin-Clos de Bèze Grand Cru AOC 2022

A Pinot Noir that places origin above effect. Juicy red fruit and a fine austerity are held in balance; in its youth, the site's noble intensity shows more as tension than as fullness. At 13.0% vol., the wine remains dry and slender in build without losing depth.

Domaine Bruno Clair is based in Marsannay-la-Côte and farms 27 hectares across eight villages of the Côte d'Or, yielding 32 appellations. The Chambertin-Clos de Bèze ranks among the estate's crown jewels: part of the parcel stands on vines planted in 1912 that now produce only tiny yields. The estate's roots trace back to Clair-Daü, formed in 1919 through the marriage of Joseph Clair and Marguerite Daü. After its dissolution in 1985, Bruno Clair started afresh in 1986 with seven hectares.

Varietal Pinot Noir, spontaneously fermented, with 20 to 50 percent whole clusters in the vat and measured extraction. This is followed by 18 to 20 months in barrique with 20 to 50 percent new oak. Time handles the clarification: the wine rests long enough to be bottled without cosmetic intervention. In the vineyard, cover cropping and the avoidance of herbicides are standard practice, and the sixth generation — Edouard, Arthur and Margaux Clair — works with higher proportions of whole clusters and less sulphur.

Silky tannin carries the wine, beneath which runs a taut, saline line into a long mineral finish. Nothing is forced, everything remains transparent.

With braised pheasant breast, pink-roasted saddle of venison with porcini, bœuf bourguignon, and aged Époisses.

A wine that demands patience: with decades in the cellar it gains in complexity.