Philippe Pacalet was born into a family of winemakers whose tradition in the craft dates back to 1780. He is an oenologist graduate who specialized in natural yeasts, majoring in organic viticulture and natural winemaking. Philippe had no shortage of role models starting out. He was mentored by Jules Chauvet, who is credited with building the basis of natural oenology and wine tasting. Furthermore, Philippe is the nephew of Marcel Lapierre, a legendary natural winemaker in Beaujolais. Following in both his mentor’s and his uncle’s footsteps, he has become one of the leading natural winemakers in Burgundy, producing wines with minimal intervention to ensure that the terroir is as transparent as possible in his selections.

Philippe began making his own wines in 2001 after 10 years of working for a distinguished estate in Côte de Nuits. He does not possess his own vineyards but is cautious to contract with growers who work organically and sustainably, following his own rigid set of beliefs. Philippe is an advocate for organic farming, as it allows for good fertility and high quality wild yeasts as well as the growth of microorganisms in the soil which helps to nourish the vines. He firmly feels that grape variety is also vital and having rootstock with good genetics that stem deeply in the soil makes a difference. Philippe produces wines from some of the most renowned appellations of Côte d’Or. Pommard, Gevrey-Chambertin, Meursault, ChambolleMusigny, Puligny-Montrachet, Vosne-Romanée and Nuits-Saint-Georges include some of the villages where he strategically chose vineyard parcels that parallel with the principles of his work.

Philippe personally supervises farming of these vineyards throughout each phase and ensures harvest is performed manually by his team. Being that terroir is of utmost importance to him, Philippe removes anything from the vinification process that can obscure the purity of the land, allowing each wine’s specific characteristics to shine through. His goal is to keep these factors as constant as possible so that the origin is expressed which he carries out by utilizing wild yeasts (of which one may find 30 different species in a vineyard creating diversity and consequently, complexity) to aid in fermentation and only using sulfur at bottling. All grapes are handpicked and undergo a strict selection while still in the vineyards before being transported to Philippe’s winery in Beaune where they are whole bunch fermented, undergo a lengthy maceration and the traditional foot stomping, which is known as pigeage in France. Aging always takes place on fine lees in used oak. Philippe’s overall philosophy is “Authenticity, Non-Interventionism and Cultural Experience.” All of his care and attention to detail results in unrivaled top quality wines of stunning clarity.

VINEYARDS: The Gamay grapes for this bottling stem from the Les Roches, La Delatte and La Grande Charrière vineyards. The trellised vines average 55 years of age and receive southeastern exposure. The terroir is granitic with manganese compounds. It is eroded on the surface—a pink, coarse granite sand which forms a loose sedimentary rock called “gorrhe.” Although not certified, vineyards are farmed organically.

VINTAGE: 2015 is already showing great quality in both the reds and the whites! Philippe classifies it as a ‘solar’ vintage, referencing the years of 1985 and 2005. It was a dry year that was dominated by sun and heat. After July 22nd the dry spell broke with regular rain and above average warm temperatures. Rainfall was then variable in August depending upon the area of the vineyards. This allowed the vines to ripen in good conditions. With thick skins, the health of the grapes stayed nearly perfect until harvest. The resulting reds are juicy and structured, leaving an impression of a great year with the smoothness of a growing season that was full of sunshine. The ripe tannins are in harmony with an exciting freshness. The whites are rich with interesting balances and nuances and a prominent character.

VINIFICATION AND MATURATION: Harvest commenced early on September 2nd-3rd. Grapes underwent a whole bunch vinification. Pigeage, which is the French winemaking term for the traditional stomping of the grapes in open fermentation tanks, took place once a day over the course of 18 days. Alcoholic fermentation was carried out with wild yeasts and without sulphites. Fermentation temperature varied from 63°F to 88°F at the end. The wine was aged on its lees in used oak barrels (foudres) for 10 months prior to release.

TASTING NOTES: This Moulin à Vent lives up to its reputation as “fruity like Beaujolais and charming like Burgundy.” The pink granite terroir imparts very specific flavors into the wine—mineral, fruit (cherry) and some floral notes (violet, rose). The palate, which is rich and elegant, yet fresh, is very well integrated and beautifully structured. Although enjoyable in its youth it shows a great aging potential.