One for the fans of toasty, oaky, white burgundies. Well integrated and beautifully balanced mind you, this is a serious wine for not crazy money in today's burgundy market. Can be drunk now, but your patience will be truly rewarded over the next 3-5 years.
Sous la Roche is a half-hectare plot planted in 2000, located just above the 1er Cru Beaurepaire. Soil is very thin in that part of Santenay and the vines are almost directly planted on the bedrock, the area is scattered with stone walls, while the ground is covered with stones that have the particularity to retain the day heat and radiate it back at night. The grapes therefore always reach perfect maturity which adds a certain roundness to the very mineral characteristic of the wine.
Christiane Bachey-Legros, has been managing the estate since 1993, and together with her 2 sons, Lénaïc and Samuel, they manage with great passion a domain of 16ha located across the areas of Santenay, Maranges and Chassagne-Montrachet. The estate has been in the family's hands since Christiane’s great-great grand-parents.
The uniqueness of this vineyard lies in the fact that it is one of the oldest of the Southern Côte de Beaune. The vines are on average 55 years old; one is even 80 years old and it produces a very concentrated Santenay 1er Cru from its small, deep black grapes.
Their vineyard consists in 5 large plots each of a surface area of 1.5ha (3.70 acres). The plot of Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Morgeot White is the largest and most prestigious, with a surface area of 2ha .
In order to maintain the vineyard and obtain elegant and full-flavoured wines, Christiane and her two sons undertake high-quality viticulture and use a practice of planned disease control. Christiane is responsible for monitoring the ripeness and maturity of the grapes to decide when the grape harvest should begin.
After having overseen the sorting of the grapes in the vineyard, the 2 brothers ensure the grapes are sorted a second time on a vibrating table.The grapes are vinified in the winery equipped with stainless steel vats. The wines mature in oak barrels in their vaulted cellars.