Santenay Les Coteaux Sous La Roche, Domaine Antoine Olivier

Tasting Note

An opulent wine with a lively salty, mineral character and a hint of liquorice. Rich and creamy on the palate with a lingering finish.

Producer Note

Domaine Antoine Olivier was founded at the end of the 1960s, from a few vineyards left by Antoine Chevalier Moreau to his grandson, Hervé Olivier. Hervé began extending the estate by purchasing historic, old vineyards across Santenay, some of which had not been used for a century, paying particular attention to famous white wine vineyards. The quality of these soils is now recognised in a series of brilliant wines, in particular the exceptional white Santenay, something of a rarity in what is predominantly a red wine growing area. Today, Hervé’s grandson Antoine Olivier and his sister Rachel manage the estate. They are dedicated growers and follow organic practices in the vineyard. Their philosophy is to combine modernity with respect for the Burgundian soils and this stunning collection wines really showcases this.

Vintage

2017 saw some spring frost; however the temperatures increased throughout the latter part of spring and early summer. The summer experienced warm, dry conditions interspersed with hot spells, which allowed ripening to develop at a good pace. The vines reached good levels of maturity and produced ripe, healthy fruit.

Vineyard

The grapes come from a single vineyard ‘Coteaux Sous la Roche’, which translates as ‘under the rocks’. The south facing plot has a very stony soil which imparts a distinctive mineral character to the wine. The vineyard is managed with respect for the unique attributes of each site’s terroir and is farmed sustainably and organically, although it is not certified. Some biodynamic philosophies are also followed. The grapes for this cuvée were harvested early to retain acidity. They were hand-picked and carefully sorted prior to vinification.

Winemaking

The grapes were gently pressed and then racked to barrel where fermentation took place using natural yeasts. The wine was kept on its fine lees and underwent bâtonnage to impart texture and complexity to the wine. Malolactic fermentation took place in barrel. The wine was 100% barrel aged for 12 months, in traditional Burgundian barrels of 228 litre barrels, of which 25% were new oak. The wine was then transferred to tank where it spent a further six months, prior to being lightly fined, filtered and estate bottled.

Serving Suggestion

Superb with oysters or white meats.

Grape

Chardonnay 100%