Domaine Jean Fournier Aligote Champ Forey Vieilles Vignes 2023

Domaine Jean Fournier Aligote Champ Forey Vieilles Vignes

Region: Burgundy, France

Vintage: 2023

Bottle size: 75cl

Grape: Aligoté, Melon de Bourgogne

ABV: 12.5%

The wine displays a medium lemon yellow colour with aromas of jasmine, ripe conference pear and citrus on the nose. On the palate, the texture is balanced by an impressive saline tension that lingers on the long and salivating finish.

Farmed organically since the early 2000s, the vineyards are planted at high density, between 13,000 and 20,000 vines per hectare, forcing the roots deeper to give the vines greater protection from climate extremities and intensify the mineral expression in the finished wines. Natural grass cover is used to strengthen soil diversity and water retention, and the soils are worked by horse to avoid compaction. The grapes are grown on a 0.5-hectare parcel in Marsannay-la-Côte called 'Champ Forey' located on former riverbed scree. The vines were planted in 1921 and 1945 with an pre-clonal Aligoté variety called ‘Doré’ (meaning Golden). It shares the same high acidity as current Aligoté clones but has much greater complexity.This was the first ever single-parcel cuvée of the Domaine created in 2004.

The grapes are hand-picked in 15 kg boxes, upon arrival at the winery the whole bunches are pressed for 3 to 5 hours, the juice is then left to settle for 12 to 24 hours. Fermentation takes place naturally in stainless steel vats. The wine is aged for 12 months in 600L used oak barrels, the final blend remains in tank for 4 to 6 months before bottling.

One of the most established names in Marsannay, Domaine Jean Fournier is run by dynamic winemaker, Laurent Fournier. Since joining his father Jean in 2001, Laurent has developed a reputation for both crafting quality Marsannay and championing the Aligoté grape. The Fournier’s intricate knowledge of Marsannay has led to Laurent spearheading the current 1er Cru classification procedure.