Domaine Bachelet Cote de Nuits-Villages 2021

Denis Bachelet's Côte de Nuits-Villages comes from seven small plots around Brochon, just north of Gevrey-Chambertin: three in Queue de Hareng, three in Vignois, and one in Créole, all east-facing at about 300 meters on limestone and clay, with vines planted in 1952. The cellar regime is pure Bachelet: full destemming, pre-fermentation maceration, fermentation on ambient yeasts with punch-downs and pump-overs, then 15 to 18 months in barrel with a restrained share of new wood, bottled by hand without fining or filtration. The 2021 crop was minuscule, seven barrels where the domaine typically fills twenty-two. Vines nearly seven decades old, a master's cellar, a modest appellation: value, defined.