It has been a very long time since the wine world has had an outstanding new Puligny domaine emerge from the Côte d’Or firmament. Thanks to the Bachelet brothers, we now do. Marc and Alexandre Bachelet not only have Puligny holdings where they are fast establishing themselves as a benchmark, they also make delicious Santenay and are setting new quality standards in their home turf of Maranges, an appellation rarely sighted on our shores. 

Bachelet-Monnot was only formed in 2005 from a combination of family vineyards and long term leases. Today, all of the family’s vineyards, including those of Domaine Bernard Bachelet et Fils, have been consolidated and are now being farmed under the one roof. While the vast majority of their vines are family-owned, the Bachelet’s have also retained a few notable parcels in Puligny and Chassagne under long-term contract. 

In all the brothers farm 23-hectre with the white holdings featuring a stunning Bourgogne from Puligny (30 feet from the edge of the AOC), some very well situated, old vine villages, small holdings in both Les Folatières and Les Referts and a tiny plot of Bâtard-Montrachet from that vineyard’s coolest upper reaches. The red wines, include a Bourgogne Rouge from declassified village sites, two Maranges 1er Cru; Clos de la Boutière and La Fussière and an old vine parcel in Santenay Les Charmes.

“Brothers Mark and Alexandre preside over a superb portfolio of serious, structured whites and demonstrative, pleasure-bent reds.” William Kelley, The Wine Advocate

Bachelet-Monnot’s intense Puligny-based whites radiate a youthful exuberance, a powerful and shimmering freshness, salty minerality and fabulous precision. Our only advice would be: If you can find them, buy them.  For years we have been beating the drum for this grower’s beautifully expressive red wines—these are arguably the best value collection of red Burgundies we ship. Maranges and Santenay may not be names that roll off the tongue in the same way Gevrey, Vosne and Chambolle do. However, it is fascinating to see what a new pair of well-travelled eyes, an innate understanding of each vineyard’s terroir and instinctive winegrowing talent can produce, regardless of whether the vineyards have famous monikers. And, when a producer lavishes that same care and attention on his Bourgogne Rouge as his Bâtard-Montrachet, you can expect to taste some pretty amazing values.

In the vines, the Bachelet brothers adopt an unforced, labour-intensive approach to achieve their goals of naturally balanced and precise wines. All soils are ploughed, herbicides are eschewed, and strict de-budding is carried out to moderate yields. All grapes are hand-picked at optimum ripeness.

In terms of the winemaking, for the whites, the grapes are crushed before pressing and the juice ferments wild without settling. Maturation is in 350-litre barrels, with between 15 and 25% new wood and the wines spend their second winter in tank before bottling. For the reds, again, new oak is used sparingly. As Jasper Morris notes in Inside Burgundy, there is “no more cold maceration, a bit less sulphur, shorter vatting time with a few whole bunches. In short, a relaxation of control in order to allow more expression”. Apart from the Clos de la Boutière and Santenay Vieilles Vignes which are destemmed, there reds are fermented with between 15 and 30% whole bunches, depending on the terroir.

Once you’ve encountered the tunes of the Bachelet Boys, it’s very hard to forget them. Unfortunately, other importers from other markets have also cottoned on to the immaculate quality here, so we don’t get anywhere near the volumes we would like. Please contact your account manager if you are interested in an allocation.