Haut Champs Blanc
⏳ Drinking Window
2023 - 2030
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
fresh oysters, grilled goat cheese, roasted poultry with herbs
✨ Technical Specifications
Hailing from a parcel of remarkably old vines planted in 1934 within the commune of Chassagne-Montrachet, Domaine Jean-Marc Pillot's 'Les Hauts Champs' is a masterclass in elevating the Aligoté grape. While Chardonnay dominates the modern narrative of Burgundy, this cuvée pays homage to the region's historical heritage. Pillot treats these ancient vines with the same reverence as his Premier Crus, fermenting and aging the wine in oak barrels. This traditional approach coaxes out an unexpected depth, combining Aligoté's signature vibrant, electric acidity with a rich, textured mid-palate and a profound mineral core derived from the clay-limestone soils of the Côte de Beaune.
🍾 About the Producer
Tracing its viticultural heritage to Jean-Baptiste Pillot in 1910, Domaine Jean-Marc Pillot is anchored in the revered limestone-clay soils of Chassagne-Montrachet. Jean-Marc took the helm in 1991, shifting away from selling fruit to négociants toward crafting expressive, domaine-bottled wines, joined in recent years by his son Antonin. Today encompassing approximately 12 to 15 hectares across Chassagne, Puligny-Montrachet, Meursault, and Santenay, the estate practices organic vineyard cultivation with rigorous soil plowing, yield control, and hand harvesting. Whites are pneumatically pressed as whole clusters, fermented with native yeasts, and matured on fine lees for 12 months in French oak barrels (around 30% new) before spending six months settling in stainless steel. The estate notably maintains an unusually strong commitment to red Chassagne-Montrachet alongside pristine Premier Cru whites, headlined by the benchmark, centenarian-vine Chassagne-Montrachet Premier Cru Les Vergers 'Clos Saint Marc'.
🍇 Grapes
Aligoté