Domaine B. Burgaud

Bernard Burgaud took over this domaine after the untimely death of his father in 1980. There were just 2 hectares of vines then and Bernard had now doubled the holdings to 4 hectares. His vineyards are split between the steep inclines guarding the slopes above the town of Ampuis (66%) and the controversial flat plateau (34%) which has only been planted since the 1960s. His cellars are located in the small hamlet of Le Champin, overlooking the Côte Brune.

Bernard Burgaud has strong views regarding Côte Rotie and has little time for the so-called modernist new-wave producers. He ferments his Syrah grapes at high temperatures before the wine is transferred to large wooden foudres for the malolactic fermentation. The wines are then aged in small oak barriques (20% new) for 15-18 months. The wines are bottled unfined and unfiltered. Bernard produces deeply coloured, rich, well extracted wines that are now amongst the finest in the appellation.