Morgon Cote du Py Vieilles Vignes, Domaine Jean Foillard 2020

Jean and Agnès Foillard took over the domaine from Jean's father in 1980, and it wasn't long before their wines reached the cult-like status they enjoy today. Early on, Jean began to follow the teachings of Jules Chauvet, a traditionalist who defied everything that the more commercial brands were touting in the region. Jean and three other local vignerons, Marcel Lapierre, Jean-Paul Thévenet, and Guy Breton, soon joined in on the movement. This Gang of Four, as christened by famous American importer Kermit Lynch, called for a return to the old practices of viticulture and vinification: starting with old vines, never using synthetic herbicides or pesticides, harvesting late, rigorously sorting to remove all but the healthiest grapes, adding minimal doses of sulphur dioxide or none at all, and refusing both chaptalization and filtration. With access to the very best vineyards in one of the most renowned areas of Morgon, the 'Côtes du Py', and 60-year-old vines, Jean's wines have a wonderful purity and freshness. This is a true and natural expression of Morgon: rustic structure, spicy notes, and mineral-laden backbone.