Domaine Charlopin-Tissier · 2019 Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Cru ‘Sous Frétille’

The wine

Sous Frétille sits near the hilltop of Pernand-Vergelesses on a southeast-facing slope — the same ridge, the same soils, the same limestone as Corton-Charlemagne directly across the hill. The Premier Cru status was granted in 2000 — relatively recent in Burgundy terms — for white wines only, from Chardonnay grown on thin stony soils at elevation. The cooler position at the top of the slope is what makes Sous Frétille distinctive: it retains freshness and mineral tension in warm vintages that lower sites cannot always preserve.

The Charlopin-Tissier parcel is just 0.11 hectares — a fraction of the total Sous Frétille climat. Very small production. The grapes are destemmed and fermented spontaneously before 16 months ageing on fine lees in cigar-shaped 400-litre barrels from Atelier Centre France — a cooper that produces a distinctive barrel shape that gives more surface area contact between wine and oak than a standard barrel, integrating the oak more harmoniously over the ageing period. New oak percentage of 75–100% — ambitious but appropriate for a wine of this structure and concentration.

2019 was a warm growing season across the Côte de Beaune — producing wines of natural concentration and richness. For Sous Frétille, where the cooler hilltop position is an advantage in warm vintages, the 2019 produced Chardonnay with the depth of a warm year and the mineral precision of the elevated limestone terroir.

Vineyard & vintage details

Producer: Domaine Charlopin-Tissier
Cuvée: Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Cru ‘Sous Frétille’ Blanc
Grape: 100% Chardonnay
Village: Pernand-Vergelesses · Premier Cru
Climat: Sous Frétille — 0.11 hectares
Aspect: Southeast-facing
Elevation: Near hilltop
Soil: Stony limestone
Farming: Organic
Vinification: Destemmed · spontaneous fermentation · 16 months on fine lees
Barrels: Cigar-shaped 400-litre · Atelier Centre France · 75–100% new oak
Vintage: 2019
Format: 750ml · 13% vol