Paul Pernot

Domaine Paul Pernot, located at 7 Place du Monument, Puligny-Montrachet, is one of the largest landowners in this appellation, which is home to many renowned names. Alongside Domaine Leflaive and Domaine de Montille, it ranks among the top three landowners in the village. Yet it remains a family estate, now run by the third generation, and is renowned for wines that remain true to the spirit of the land and avoid undue publicity.

History

The Pernot family has owned land in Puligny-Montrachet for over 200 years. Paul Pernot officially founded the winery in 1959, starting with around 10 hectares, many of which were planted between 1957 and 1961 and are still producing grapes today. Paul’s two sons, Michel and Paul Jr., joined the business and eventually took over the day-to-day management. Since then, the estate has expanded to around 23 hectares.

More recently, the third generation has joined the business: grandson Philippe has launched his own brand, Domaine Pernot Belicard, using grapes from the family vineyards, whilst granddaughter Alvina is also involved in the work.

Vineyards

Of the 23 hectares, 15 are located in Puligny-Montrachet itself. The estate is the largest landowner in Les Folatières, owning three separate plots within this Premier Cru totalling around 3.5 hectares, covering the Pey-Bois, Clos and hillside plots. Other key Premier Crus include Les Poussel, Cham-Canet and Clos de la Garenne, the latter of which the estate produces as a monopole under the full name Cham-Canet Clos de la Jaclot. Outside Puligny, the estate owns vineyards in Santenay, Bonnes, Volnay and Pommard, acquired relatively recently, as well as two Grand Cru vineyards: Bâtard-Montrachet and Bienven-Bâtard-Montrachet. The Burgundy Chardonnay is produced from old vines planted in 1975 on the border with the village appellation.

Terroir

Puligny-Montrachet is situated in the Côte de Beaune, where Chardonnay grows on limestone and clay soils, the depth and stoniness of which vary from plot to plot. The Premier Cru Les Folatières, on the upper slopes of the village to the north, has fine soils over dense bedrock, producing wines with tension and mineral clarity. Les Pucelles is situated on the middle slope to the south, bordering Bâtard-Montrachet, with deeper soils and a richer, broader character.

Grape Varieties

The domaine focuses almost exclusively on Chardonnay for its white wines, which make up the vast majority of production. As for red wines, the range is complemented by old-vine Pinot Noir from Volnay Premier Cru Carelle sous la Chapelle and Beaune Premier Cru Clos du Dessus des Marconnets.

Winemaking

All wines above the ‘Burgundy’ level are fermented in barrels. The proportion of new oak is limited to 25%, and lightly toasted barrels are used so as not to mask the character of the individual plots. Stirring of the lees is kept to a minimum during fermentation and is not carried out during ageing. This approach prioritises the expression of the terroir over the winemaker’s intervention.

Wines

The range begins with Burgundy Chardonnay and Burgundy Aligoté from vineyards in the Puligny area. These are followed by several Puligny-Montrachet village-level cuvées from various groups of plots.

Above these are four Premier Crus: Les Folatières, Les Pucelles, Champ Canet, Clos de la Jacquelotte and Clos de la Garenne. At the top of the range are two Grand Crus,

Bâtard-Montrachet and Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet, which are produced in small quantities. The red wines, Volnay and Beaune Premier Crus, round off the range.