Bruno Lorenzon: the brilliant 2020s

Bruno Lorenzon crafts standout wines from often overlooked appellations  It is this small domaine that is for the Wine Advocate’s William Kelley“one of the best addresses in contemporary Burgundy”. These little-known but superb wines from the Cote Chalonnaise surpass many more famous names from grander appellations. This is a domaine to follow. 

The wines are the result of distinctive production methods. Bruno Lorenzon trains his vines high at up to 1.8m, and uses high density planting of 14,000-20,000 vines per hectare. This makes for very labour-intensive viticulture, requiring around 750 man hours per hectare, but gives low yields and exceptional intensity of flavour.  

In the winery, macerations are long to ensure gentle extraction. The wines spend much longer maturing than is usual in this region, with 12-20 months in barrel followed by another 4-6 months in tank. Lorenzon is particularly skilled in matching oak to cuvee; he trained as a cooper before setting up his winery and still takes an active involvement in producing the barrels.

The 2022 vintage is the latest in a string of successful years for Lorenzon. We tasted the wines earlier this month and were very impressed. Both whites and reds are expressive and vibrant, with tense minerality and a lot of potential to age.  
 
These are outstanding wines that transcend their appellations. As William Kelley puts it, “there are very few estates in the Côte d’Or operating on Lorenzon’s level today”. We recommend them very highly indeed. 

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