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There are wineries which have been driven by craft, tradition, and just deliciousness for years, decades, and in some instances centuries. These wineries are the pinnacles of fine wine. This is our list of the producers we feel are worthy of collecting, worthy of drinking, and worthy of a bit more reading. Our cellar book is here for you to learn, drool, and of course shop. Cheers.
One of the original grower champagne houses. Rodolphe, the current proprietor, continues the legacy of making some of the greatest blanc de blancs champagne created in the area. Central to the Domaine is the outstanding Chétillons vineyard in Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. The Péters estate has become synonymous with this vineyard, or perhaps it’s the other way around. In youth, the wines here are piercing with finesse. After a few years of maturity, they blossom out, showing layers of minerality and subtle spice.
It's easy to forget that Domaine Dujac was founded by the now-iconic Jacques Seysses in the late 1960s. It feels like a benchmark that has always been there. The number of winemakers in the region and around the world who model their philosophy on Dujac is impressive. The quality here speaks for itself. Dujac sits at the top of the hierarchy of producers in Burgundy. The Domaine is most commonly associated with the grand crus of Clos de la Roche and Clos Saint-Denis but their plethora of premiers cru and village wines are all worth collecting and drinking as often as humanly possible.
Dominique Lafon took over this already storied family Domaine in 1985 and has realized the potential of an extraordinary portfolio of vineyards. The white wines here truly number among the greatest in Burgundy, while the reds are fantastic values, comparatively, and still somehow flying under the radar. The vineyards, centered around Meursault (Comtes Lafon is the only property to own vineyards in all premiers crus of the village) are cultivated along with biodynamic principles since 1989. The wines here have taken a turn for a leaner, more elegant style lately, and the results are magnificent.
Volnay is an enigmatic place. It is nestled between villages that make mostly white wines — or robust, hefty reds. But here, perhaps the most elegant and subtle wines in all of Burgundy are made. That reputation owes a lot to the d’Angerville estate, a fixture of the highest quality Volnay for over two centuries. Guillaume d’Angerville, the current proprietor, took over the estate in 2003, after his father Jacques’ death. He continues the philosophy of low intervention, letting the vineyards express themselves without getting in the way. The result is an exceptional lineup that ranges from the delicious Bourgognes to the singular premiers crus, with Fremiets typically being polished and joyful... Champans, curvier and denser... Taillepieds, structured — and for the lover of a classic, nervous Burgundy. The top of the hierarchy is Clos des Ducs, a mythical vineyard and a wine that deserves a few years of cellaring to really blossom out. Few wines in Burgundy can match its beautiful perfume once matured. And forget what you know about Volnays being light, soft wines for easy drinking – almost none have a track record of being age-worthy like the Clos des Ducs.
The wines of Domaine Georges Roumier are among the absolute best in the world. Not just the best Burgundy, but the best wine. Period. From Bourgogne Rouge to the estate’s grand cru vineyards throughout the hills of Morey-Saint-Denis and Chambolle-Musigny, Roumier is known for a style of purity and finesse. ‘Finesse’ is a word that gets thrown around a lot when talking about Burgundy, but it means the wine is silky in texture rather than rustic, gliding across your palate with subtlety and ease. Roumier is the north star of elegant and age-worthy light red wine for all winemakers throughout the world. Anyone questioning that is no more than an annoying contrarian.
A decade ago, Cornas was still somewhat of an insider’s wine. These wines had a reputation for being burly and rustic in comparison with their northern cousins from Côte-Rôtie and Hermitage, but they provided an excellent opportunity to drink pure and hauntingly beautiful Syrah. Auguste Clape (who passed away in 2018, succeeded by son Pierre-Marie and grandson Olivier) was the standard-bearer of traditional winemaking in the appellation. As the pendulum has swung from polish and make-up back to old-school wines, they have gained more of a blue-chip status, but the wines are still frequently good value in comparison, and a must have in any syrah-lover’s cellar.
The Chave family is nothing short of royalty in the world of wine. The current Jean-Louis is the 16th generation in father-son succession who have tended vines in St. Joseph and the fabled hill of Hermitage, possibly the birthplace and arguably the pinnacle of the Syrah grape. While several producers now separate out their various plots in Hermitage (perhaps a nod to the more marketing-savvy neighbors in Côte-Rôtie), Chave is all about the art of blending together these components into a whole that is greater than the sum of the parts. The results is a wine that captures the soul of the Hermitage, structured and full, with hauntingly wild and floral aromas. In a handful of vintages, there is another label, Cuvée Cathelin. It’s not intended to be a prestige-cuvée, but rather a way for Jean-Louis to express a specific nature of a vintage that may not work in the Hermitage. Worthy of special mention is the wines from St. Joseph, not to be looked down upon as secondary. Remember that this is the ancestral home of the family, and Jean-Louis has been dedicating all his resources to re-establishing the terraced vineyards here. We will wish we had held on to more of these wines soon.
In many industries there are family legacies who are considered the untouchables despite a world obsessed with new discoveries. In those industries, there are also some grandchildren who have inherited fortune only to destroy it upon their control. The Drouhin family are the primary family of Burgundy, who are one of the only large producers who still makes great wines today. Their range stretches from everyday bottles under $20, to some of the more collectible and rare bottling from all of France. With such a large amount of wines made, there are inevitably the gems of the winery. We believe that Drouhin makes some of the best wines from the village and grand cru vineyards in Chambolle-Musigny. They also make consistent white and reds from the southern region of Beaune. Their style is clean, fruit driven, and never overly oaky. It’s an elegant wine that has survived the realities of Succession.
The late Giuseppe Rinaldi is one of the great traditional producers of Barolo. Like Conterno and Mascarello, Rinaldi makes wines with depth and complexity that require time to show their true colors. They demand commitment, and they reward it. Now run by his daughters, Marta and Carlotta, the 6th-generation estate continues to produce focused, nuanced wines from some of the greatest vineyards in Barolo.
At a time when winemaking styles change as quickly as trends in fashion, it’s important to celebrate the fierce guardians of tradition. Bartolo Mascarello was, by all accounts, the fiercest. His wines were celebrated for their nuance and elegance. Maria Teresa Mascarello, Bartolo’s daughter, has only turned up the quality since the early 2000s. The Bartolo Mascarello winery is worthy of being crowned a landmark of Italian wine. They make one Barolo every year that is a blend of small plots of vineyards. Their dolcetto is considered the greatest. The barbera is the easy drinking wine we wish we saw more.
If there were an Italian wine hall of fame, Vietti would be an obvious inductee. In Barolo, they were one of the first producers to do single vineyard bottlings. At the time, Barolo wasn’t considered one of the great wine regions so this seemed like a romantic endeavor. Today, these wines are some of the most collectible and cellar worthy wines in Italy. There are eras of experimentation creating wines of different styles. From the early 60s until the 80s they produced certain wines which are no longer made today. You’ll find obscure wines from grapes such as pelaverga and freisa. In the 80s, there was a heroic run of years with ’82, ’85, ’88, and ’89 being the best. Post 1990, they made wines which were better suited for earlier consumption. Beginning around 2010 and under the direction of the founder’s son, Luca Currado, the wines are some of the most elegant and nuanced wines both the winery and Barolo has produced. Pronounced (Vee-Et-Tee).
Every wine region has its Serena Willams, Derek Jeter, or Lebron equivalent. DRC in Burgundy, Chave in the Rhône, Petrus of Pomerol, and without question the wines of Giacomo Conterno in Barolo have equal notoriety. Today the winery is run by the third generation winemaker— Roberto Conterno. He’s continued the tradition of making Italy’s most collectible wine, Monfortino, while also expanding the winery with new Barolo single- vineyards as well as a project outside of the Barolo zone in Gattinara, where he utilizes the same grape, nebbiolo. The style of Conterno is the epitome of balance in wine: they are never oaky nor rustic. They are pale in color, but have a perfume and taste that linger infinitely.
Teobaldo Cappellano is one of the most influential figures in the history of Italian wine. Although by no means outside of Barolo is his name a household one, he carved the path for what’s today’s traditional and also natural wine movement in Italy. In the 1980s and 90s as Barolo was gaining international success, many producers began to change their style in an effort to receive high scores and high prices. Reluctant to bend to fads, Cappellano championed traditional winemaking, was an early adopter of organic farming, only used native yeasts, and made decisions based on curiosity and craft rather than economics. Today, under the leadership of Augusto Cappellano, the winery makes two Barolos. “Rupestris” which is from the historic vineyards and the ultra-rare “Piè Franco” which is from vines planted on original rootstock. Both are long-lived, funky, and prove that Teobaldo was ahead of his time.