Domaine Jean-Marc Burgaud began in 1989 and has slowly explanded to 19 hectares of vines; 13 hectares in the Beaujolais cru Morgon, 1 hectare of vines planted in the cru Régnié, and 5 hectares in Beaujolais Villages. Of the 13 hectares in Morgon, 8 hectares of vines lie on the hillside of Côte de Py where the youngest vines still average over 50 years in age. Before founding his domaine, Jean-Marc obtained his diploma in oenology and winegrowing, but his teaching began long before that. Born into a family of generations of wine growers, Jean-Marc learned the importance of working the vines by hand and traditional vinification techniques in the cellar by the age of 22.

In the vineyards, Jean-Marc follows the rhythm of the seasons, applies organic principles, and respects his family’s traditions when nurturing the vines. All vineyard work is done by hand and horse, the vines are densely planted and have been farmed using organic principles for over 10 years. He believes, “To make a ‘grand vin’, the vigneron has to know his terroirs and how to farm to obtain the most beautiful grapes as possible and it is from this harmony that ‘grandes bouteilles’ are born.”

In the cellar, Jean-Marc vinifies his wines with traditional Burgundian methods; whole cluster maceration in vats for variable durations according to the vintage and the appellation. Only indigenous yeasts are used in the cellar and with the exception of sulfur at bottling, nothing is added during the vinification process in order to obtain typical wines of terroir. The wines are aged in either concrete or barrique for several months before bottling. To respect the balance of his vineyards, some cuvées are lightly filtered while others are not before bottling. Bottling begins in April and continues through August at the domaine.