Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er cru Aux Gravains, Henri Germain et Fils 2022

Down a narrow backstreet of Meursault and through the tiniest of vineyards is one of Burgundy’s most unfindable cellars. They are amongst the coldest and dampest too, factors that play an important part in the making of some of Meursault’s most delicious wines.

We have bought them, cellared them, and drunk them over many years, starting in the early eighties with Henri Germain, father of Jean-François who is the present incumbent. He is a modest and affable character who is highly regarded by his winemaking peers and in 2018 was joined by his daughter Lucie. At only 8 ha it isn’t a large domaine, but they have well-placed plots in Meursault and in Beaune 1er cru Bressandes. Their vines in Chassagne-Montrachet came by way of Jean-François’ mother, one of the that village’s extended Pillot family. Jean-François is therefore a cousin of Paul and Thierry Pillot, furthermore his wife is a Jobard and his brother Eric is winemaker at Vincent Girardin. It is an interconnected world in Burgundy! Back to those cellars with their colourful, fungi-encrusted walls and flurries of penicillin. It is these conditions that lead to extremely long alcoholic fermentations and malolactics that last well into the wines’ second winter in barrel. The flavour profiles of the wines are therefore enormously full and complex, leading to bottles that develop remarkably well over time.