2021 Domaine Bornard Chardonnay Au Fil des Générations

WINEMAKER: Tony Bornard
REGION: Jura, FR
VARIETY: Chardonnay
VITICULTURE: Certified Biodynamic

Unfortunately this is the third time we have received this cuvée. Only made in years with severe frost it represents all the estate’s Chardonnay – from the parcels that normally make Les Gaudrettes, Blanc de la Rouge, and Chardo Gai. In 2017, 2019 and now again in 2021 the frost was so severe that the only way to have enough juice to make a wine was to combine everything. The wine was directly-pressed then aged in barrels which were topped up. 12.6% ABV.

Philippe Bornard lives in the village of Pupillin near Arbois and the Swiss border. His vineyards were inherited from his father, who previously sold only to co-ops. It was Pierre Overnoy, another Arbois winemaker, who eventually convinced Philippe to begin to make his own wine, and now, with over 27 years of experience under his belt, he is working with nearly 6 hectares of 30-year old vines, and farms exclusively biodynamically - officially certified in 2012. The grapes are grown at high altitudes, on limestone and clay soils, allowing a slow ripening. Typically the wine begins a long, slow maceration in fiberglass, and then is moved to large older oak barrels for maturation, which lasts about one year.

Big changes have occurred in the Bornard domaine over the past couple of years. Philippe has retired and his talented son Tony has taken over the operation with little fuss and with few observable differences for outsiders. Tony is a meticulous operator both in the vineyard and in the winery. He has a very clear vision about what he wants to achieve and how he is going to achieve it. The winery and many of the vineyards are in the quaint commune of Pupillin which is quite close to Arbois near the Swiss border. Tony is building a new winery in this village so that his father’s house will no longer be given over to the winemaking operations.