Domaine Pierre Thibert

Domaine Pierre Thibert may be a young estate by Burgundian standards, but it has seen constant growth and modernisation since its inception. While volumes are small, the wines are excellent: intense, beautifully balanced, accessible, and with wonderful purity of fruit.

The eponymous Pierre Thibert moved his estate to its current home in Corgoloin in 1995. Since then, it has steadily grown, and new parcels recently acquired in Beaune brought its total land to five hectares.

Pierre’s son Arthur took over the running of the domaine in 2017, having worked alongside his father for five years. Arthur is committed to the gradual modernisation of his winery; since his takeover, a new cuverie has been built and the vinification and elevage has been adapted to each wine and vintage. For Arthur, it is all about balance; every year, he adapts his winemaking methods to the grapes that come into the winery. Without fail, though, the wines are all bottled without fining or filtration.

Arthur’s stripped-back approach applies to his vineyards, too. He employs farming methods that are organic without certification, which have worked to push quality levels upwards.

Beaune

The wines of Beaune are usually on the lighter side, especially if from the flatter vineyards on the Pommard side, or the sandier soils towards Savigny. The sturdiest wines with the greatest depth of flavour come from the steeper slopes overlooking the town itself.

• 128 hectares of village Beaune and 52 hectares of Côte de Beaune
• 322 hectares of Premier Cru vineyards. The finest vineyards include Les Grèves, Clos des Mouches
• Recommended producers:  Germain, Devevey, Domaine des Croix, Jadot, Drouhin, Camille Giroud.
• Recommended restaurants: Ma Cuisine (not least for the wine list), Le Conty

Pinot Noir

Pinot Noir is probably the most frustrating, and at times infuriating, wine grape in the world. However when it is successful, it can produce some of the most sublime wines known to man. This thin-skinned grape which grows in small, tight bunches performs well on well-drained, deepish limestone based subsoils as are found on Burgundy's Côte d'Or.

Pinot Noir is more susceptible than other varieties to over cropping - concentration and varietal character disappear rapidly if yields are excessive and yields as little as 25hl/ha are the norm for some climats of the Côte d`Or.

Because of the thinness of the skins, Pinot Noir wines are lighter in colour, body and tannins. However the best wines have grip, complexity and an intensity of fruit seldom found in wine from other grapes. Young Pinot Noir can smell almost sweet, redolent with freshly crushed raspberries, cherries and redcurrants. When mature, the best wines develop a sensuous, silky mouth feel with the fruit flavours deepening and gamey "sous-bois" nuances emerging.

The best examples are still found in Burgundy, although Pinot Noir`s key role in Champagne should not be forgotten. It is grown throughout the world with notable success in the Carneros and Russian River Valley districts of California, and the Martinborough and Central Otago regions of New Zealand.