2023 Benjamin Leroux Volnay 1er Cru "Les Santenots", Burgundy, France

ABOUT THIS WINE

The "Les Santenots" vineyard is located on the border between Volnay and Meursault producing some of the most powerful and structured wines in Volnay. Classified as Premier Cru, this site boasts clay-limestone soils that impart both depth and finesse to the wine. The wine is aged in French oak barrels, harmonizing the natural richness of the fruit with soft tannins and a mineral backbone.

ABOUT THIS PRODUCER

Benjamin Leroux is Burgundian native but didn’t come from a winemaking family. In fact, his parents owned a florist shop in Beaune, which is where he first met Becky Wasserman, as a young child. He was determined to become a vigneron at any early age, and enrolled in lycée viticole in Beaune for agricultural studies at the age of 15. Afterwards, he set out traveling the world gaining experiences in Oregon, Bordeaux and New Zealand. At the age of 24, he was fortunate to land a position as régisseur at Comte Armand in Pommard - who placed their trust in his young talent. He stayed on for fifteen vintages and was given the space to start his own side project in 2007.

Despite growing his domaine and negociant business from scratch, today he vinifies almost 30 hectares from a wide range of appellations, nine of which are domaine holdings that are farmed organically and biodynamically. His range spans the Côte from Chassagne-Montrachet to Gevrey-Chambertin, and includes all levels in Burgundy’s hierarchy. He believes small is beautiful, with attention to detail, knowing every inch of land and almost every vine and has made a reputation of prioritizing interesting parcels over how famous the appellation might be. This approach has led him to rediscover several unknown excellent terroirs which has become a hallmark of his own production.