Nicolas Faure’s wines have developed a cult following, yet his journey into winemaking is 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.

Nicolas Faure’s micro-domaine may be small in scale, but his precision and devotion to craft yield wines of outsized character. Aux Argillières is one of his signature plots, just 0.12 hectares at the base of the slope in Premeaux-Prissey, which was planted with pinot noir in 1985. The site’s clay and alluvial stone soils lend density and nerve to the wine, while Faure’s cellar choices—100% whole cluster fermentation, ambient yeasts, and aging in used barrels—preserves a vibrant purity.