ARNAUD CHAPUIS, HAUTES-COTES DE BEAUNE, OUVERTURE ROUGE PINOT NOIR 2022

Our visit to Arnaud came from a tip-off from our friend Jesse who was working with Domaine Dandelion at the time (Arnaud works some of Chandon’s parcels, where Christian from Dandelion is head winemaker.). On a beautifully misty morning in the Haute Côtes De Beaune we saw his family vineyard, Aligote and Pinot planted by his parents, originally sold to a co-operative but now Arnaud makes his own wine and has recently planted more of these varietals plus a few others.. This are some of the most exciting invigorating wines in Burgundy, made with a lo-fi, hand-crafted approach that is extremely rare in the region. Energetic and incredibly pure, predictably there is not a lot to go around. 

Ouverture Rouge 2022

100% Pinot Noir. After not releasing a Pinot in 2021, it's a joy to have this wine back. A gentle 4 week maceration of whole bunches, then pressed off in his antique basket press. Fluid, pure and filled with fruit, it is drinking beautifully but I’ll be putting a bottle aside for a few years. 

Good reading on Arnaud:

https://notdrinkingpoison.substack.com/p/the-primitive-art-of-arnaud-chapuis