Winemaker Notes
This vineyard planted to Pinot Noir faces the “Sous la Velle” vineyard on the opposite side of the valley, on similarly steep slopes. The soil of this lieu-dit is a mix of limestone and marne. The vines are planted to a density of 10,000 per hectare. The grapes, harvested manually, are destemmed to 90% and the wine is aged in barrel for a twelve month period. The Pinot vines in “Sous Roche” are of an average age of 50 years with low yields and excellent concentration. There is great purity to this organically grown fruit and the ultimate wine is somewhat rustic in nature with notes of wild red fruits in the nose and flavors.
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
Ripe blackberry and pomegranate fruit, with a spicy edge. The ripeness is in no way overdone, and the structure on the palate shows a lovely balance between the tannin, fresh acidity and plentiful extract. From a 3ha parcel where the vines average 60 years of age, planted with massale selection. Harvest was fairly late and the grapes were partially destemmed before fermenting using a gentle extraction and ageing in cask for a year.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
A terrific effort from the Buisson brothers, the 2020 Saint-Romain Sous Roches bursts with scents of wild berries, plums, loamy soil and spices. Medium to full-bodied, layered and seamless, with a fleshy core of fruit, ripe tannins and a long, saline finish, it transcends expectations of the appellation.
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
A classic source of exceptional Chardonnay as well as Pinot Noir, the Côte de Beaune makes up the southern half of the Côte d’Or. Its principal wine-producing villages are Pernand-Vergelesses, Aloxe-Corton, Beaune, Pommard, Volnay, Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet and Chassagne-Montrachet.
The area is named for its own important town of Beaune, which is essentially the center of the Burgundy wine business and where many negociants center their work. Hospices de Beaune, the annual wine auction, is based here as well.