Pascal Aufranc - Chénas En Rémont Vignes de 1939 - 2018

Bettane & Desseauve

About the estate:

Pascal Aufranc began his career as a winemaker with just 1.6 hectares, located on the steep hillside of En-Rémont, at an elevation of 350 meters. It was here that he renovated an old farmhouse surrounded by vineyards planted in the 1930s. These vineyards, bordered by oak trees (the name “Chénas” derives from these woods, which were planted before the vines), now make up the estate’s vineyard: 10 hectares, including 7 in Juliénas, 2 in Chénas, and 1 in Fleurie. This lush, secluded setting—hidden from view yet offering a panoramic vista—produces wines with a rich, spicy body perfectly balanced by their granitic terroir. The 2016 vintage is excellent, particularly the estate’s flagship cuvée, Probus. Wine enthusiasts will prefer the Chénas and Fleurie wines from the 2017 vintage.

Bourgogne Aujourd'hui

About the wine:

Made from 70-year-old vines, this cuvée remains firmly at the top of its class. 15,000 wonderful bottles of this Chénas were produced. Deep garnet color, with aromas of fresh black fruits and spices... Concentrated, velvety, rich, and pure on the palate, with a “Rhône-like” character and great length. Highest score of the tasting: 18/20.

About the estate:

Pascal Aufranc began his career in 1993, and our tasting of old vintages featured in this issue demonstrates that he has been producing excellent wines for quite some time. His estate covers 9.5 hectares, half in Chénas and half in Juliénas. The estate’s two flagship wines received the “highest” rating among the 2013 vintages in their respective appellations. His Chénas Vigne de 1939 (the year of planting), grown on pure pink granite, comes from two plots adjacent to the estate (in the locality of Rémont), totaling two hectares. The wine is dense, though arguably a bit more refined and rounded than the Probus cuvée. The latter is the “essence of Juliénas”—a robust wine, structured for aging, made from 50- to 55-year-old vines across three plots in the Les Crots and En Capitans climats on sandy-loam soils. Both wines are vinified in the same way, using whole clusters, “à la Beaujolaise,” and in toasted vats; a wooden grid placed over the grapes keeps them submerged in the juice. As for the Juliénas Les Cerisiers cuvée, it is anything but a mere stopgap. The vines may be a bit younger and the maceration periods slightly shorter, but it remains a full-bodied, dense Juliénas. “There’s fruit, but that’s not all,” explains Pascal Aufranc. (5 vintages awarded by Bourgogne Aujourd’hui)

Wine Enthusiast

James Suckling