Domaine de la Soufrandière - En Chatenay 2017

Bettane & Desseauve

About wine:

Exotic profile, charming from the outset. The mid-palate is cool and salty. Produced from vines planted on the north-facing slopes of the Vergisson rock.

About the estate:

The Bret brothers, who are never short of ideas or inventiveness, have become a benchmark in the Mâconnais region thanks to their expert mastery of biodynamics. Most of the work in the vineyard is done by hand, apart from plowing and treatments (using tractors or horses), and their vineyards have become a playground for researchers from INRA. La Soufrandière is the family estate covering 11 hectares, now Demeter certified. Bret Brothers is the wine merchant business, buying grapes and producing 15 micro-vintages (ten of which are certified organic). The wines are always remarkably energetic and pure, with unparalleled digestibility. One of the region's model addresses, to be trusted with confidence.

Robert Parker - Wine Advocate

About wine:

Aromas of blanched almonds, pastry cream, lemon zest, green apples, and white flowers introduce the 2017 Pouilly-Fuissé En Châtenay, a medium-bodied, full-flavored, and textured wine that is incisive and acidic, combining high maturity with pronounced acidity in a way that is strangely reminiscent of the 1996 Burgundy white vintage—a year that seemingly has little in common with 2017. This is a high-end wine, and its evolution will be interesting to follow.

About the estate:

Domaine La Soufrandière is the family estate of the dynamic brothers Jean-Philippe and Jean-Guillaume Bret (for reviews of their négociant project, see Bret Brothers), where they produce beautifully satiny, pure, flavorful, and expressive wines. Organically grown and harvested by hand, the grapes are pressed whole before fermentation in barrels, with the wines often finishing their aging on lees in stainless steel vats to preserve their tension.

RVF - La Revue du Vin de France / Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France

About wine:

Bright gold. It offers floral notes of hawthorn, very subtle woodiness, and a firm, dense mouthfeel. A mineral wine with a long finish, well controlled. From a vineyard south of the Solutré rock.

About the estate:

Acquired by Jules Bret in 1947, the La Soufrandière estate saw the Bret brothers, Jean-Philippe and Jean-Guillaume, start out in Vinzelles with the 2000 vintage. From then on, the choice of biodynamics became obvious. They were certified Demeter in 2006 and have continued to experiment both in the vineyard and in the cellar to enhance their terroirs with infinite care. Wines with little or no sulfur are marked with the word "Zen" on the label. Alongside this estate, a high-end wine trading business was created in 2001, Bret Brothers, which is of course featured in our guide.

Burghound