Burgundy
Domaine Arnoux Père & Fils, Côte de Beaune
Pascal Arnoux is yet another graduate of the Lycée Viticole in Beaune. After working with his uncles Michel and Rémi for most of the past two decades, he took over complete control of the family domaine in 2007.
Based in the village of Chorey-lès-Beaune, Domaine Arnoux covers just under 50 acres spread out over several parcels in Chorey and Savigny-lès-Beaune, Beaune, and the hill of Corton. A practitioner of lutte-raisonnée, Pascal works his vineyards by hand and employs natural alternatives to chemical pesticides, herbicides and fungicides, including the introduction of pheromones to sexually confuse grape-worm butterflies. He confers frequently with a government eco-protection agency in Beaune and also the Côte d’Or Chamber of Commerce to keep up on the latest bio-friendly viticulture methods.
Pascal is a non-interventionist in the cellar, though he does put a lot of thought into the oak selection process. He knows a thing or two about barrels, as his father was a cooper. Arnoux’s Chorey-lès-Beaune, Savigny-lès-Beaune and Beaune reds are textbook, and what to look for on the lists of better restaurants when visiting Beaune. The domaine’s Aloxe-Corton 1er Cru Les Fournières and Grand Cru Corton Rognet are beautifully structured, with layers of complexity. Pascal also makes excellent white wines, the JWS favorite being his fleshy, mineral-driven Pernand-Vergelesses blanc.
Domaine Facts
| Vines & Wines: |
50 acres total in Chorey and Savigny-lès-Beaune, Beaune and the hill of Corton Chorey-lès-Beaune Les Beaumonts (approximately 20 acres total) Savigny-lès-Beaune Village (just under 10 acres total) Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru Les Peuillets Beaune 1er Cru En Genêt (2.5 acres) Beaune 1er Cru Cent Vignes (1.2 acres) Aloxe-Corton Village Aloxe-Corton 1er Cru Les Fournières Corton Grand Cru Rognet Pernand-Vergelesses Blanc (1 acre of Chardonnay) Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Beaune (3.7 acres on Hautes Côtes) Sustainably farmed (lutte-raisonnée) |
| Soil: | Limestone and clay marls |
| Harvest: | All parcels picked by hand using shallow bins |
| Yields: | 40 hectoliters/hectare on average |
| Vinification & Elevage: |
Grapes are 100% destemmed. Pneumatic press. Two to three-week cuvaison for reds with daily punching down and pumping over. Whites fermented in neutral barrels. Secondary malo-lactic fermentation carried out on both red and white wines. Reds aged approximately 12 months in French oak barrels with up to one-third new wood depending on the appellation. Gravity clarification instead fining and minimal or no filtration. |
| Annual Production: | 108,000 bottles / 9,000 cases total |