Nicolas Faure’s wines have developed a cult following, yet his journey into winemaking was anything but traditional. He wasn’t born into a winemaking family, nor did he inherit grand vineyards. Instead, his path took him through legendary estates like Domaine de la Romanée-Conti and Domaine Chave, where he honed his skills before piecing together his own domaine, now just one hectare in size. His vision is simple but profound: treat every vine as if it were Grand Cru.
The 2024 vintage was one of the most punishing growing seasons in recent Burgundy history. Relentless rain, rampant mildew, frost, and hail plagued the Côte de Nuits from spring through harvest. Some producers lost up to 90% of their crop. For a tiny domaine like Faure’s, every cluster that made it to the press was hard-won.
Les Vignes Blanches sits in the Combe d’Echevronne near Pernand-Vergelesses, on a southwest-facing slope. Nicolas planted 0.22 hectares of chardonnay here in 2021 using massale selections—still young vines, but already showing character.
The 2024 vintage, for all its challenges, was especially kind to white Burgundy. Cool conditions and high natural acidity produced whites of uncommon freshness, the most classical expression in a decade, by many accounts. Pernand-Vergelesses was whole-cluster pressed, fermented on ambient yeast, and aged 12 months in used barrels. It captures 2024’s signature freshness with notes of Gravenstein apple, mineral notes evoking a freshly-rained-upon pavement, and an elegance that belies the youth of the vines.
Chardonnay sometimes gets less attention in Faure's portfolio, not because it's lesser but because the aligoté and pinot noir arrived first and made such an impression. The 2024, from a vintage that was kinder to whites than reds, is a compelling moment to pay attention.
