Corton Grand Cru "Le Rognet" Vieilles Vignes AOC 2022

A Grand Cru that favours clarity over power. "I'm not looking for color or tannin," says Bruno Clavelier, who took over his grandfather Joseph Brosson's estate in the late 1980s and bottled his first vintage under his own name in 1992. His declared aim is to render the winemaker's hand invisible.

Le Rognet lies on the hill of Corton in Aloxe-Corton and is the only Grand Cru parcel of the 6.5-hectare estate, based on the outskirts of Vosne-Romanée. The iron-rich, limestone subsoil gives the wine mineral tension and longevity. The vines, planted in the 1930s and 1940s, are now over 80 years old, root deeply, and naturally yield little.

Pure Pinot Noir Fin, the traditional Burgundian clone. Fermentation takes place with indigenous yeasts in open, conical oak vats, with up to 30 percent whole clusters and manual pigeage rather than mechanical extraction; fermentation lasts around three weeks, with malolactic fermentation following in spring. The wine then ages for 16 to 18 months in Tronçais and Allier barrels, a third of them new. It is bottled unfined, unfiltered, with minimal sulphur, under protective gas.

Crystalline purity, silky texture, finely structured; the mineral tension of the iron-rich parcel carries the long finish. 13.5% ABV, dry.

Saddle of venison and breast of pheasant, as well as braised leg of lamb, boeuf bourguignon, or aged Cîteaux cheese.

Certified organic (Ecocert) since 1999, farmed biodynamically without interruption since 2005. All of the estate's wines carry the designation Vieilles Vignes.