Dominique Gruhier makes special Burgundy. Becky Wasserman (who imports both Mugnier and Gruhier) describes Gruhier's reds as Chablisien Pinot Noir. Which makes sense: his village, Épineuil, is north of Chablis and has the same bedrock of kimmeridgian limestone. And the Pinot that grows there does taste Chablisien: clear and pure with fruit that shimmers and minerals that evoke white wine. Elegance. When you taste it you understand why Mugnier (famous for his pure and graceful wines) was such a fan.

The reds are surprising. But what shouldn't be surprising is that Gruhier makes great white and sparkling wines. After all, he isn't just close to Chablis, he's also only a few kilometers southwest of the Aube in Champagne. The Aube is where top growers like Cedric Bouchard and Vouette et Sorbée make killer Champagnes. And so, in addition to uniquely elegant Pinot, he also makes a Chablis-like Bourgogne Blanc and a very Champagne-like Crémant de Bourgogne.

What importer Bowler Wine has to say about this wine...

100% Gamay. From the oldest estate vines, which are 80 years old and up, on heavy clay soils with relatively little granite and quite a lot of the iron-like mineral manganese. "Tardive" does not mean that the harvest is late but rather is a reference to the wine's ability and need to age for years. The farming is sustainable. All vineyard work is by hand, with the soils worked only superficially, at most twice per year, to protect the roots of these old vines. Vinification is traditional, semi-carbonic Beaujolais style. The whole clusters are harvested by hand and fermented spontaneously with native yeasts in open-top concrete tank. Maceration lasts around 18 days for Tardive, with a submerged cap rather than punchdowns. The wine is aged in large oak foudres of 80 to 100 years old for 9 months before bottling. Sulfur use is quite minimal.