Seiichi Saito was born in China, grew up in Japan, and came to Beaune in 2006 to study at the town’s wine school. He moved to Burgundy for good in 2008. He then spent years in some of the Côte d’Or’s most revered cellars: a few years at Simon Bize in Savigny, plus stints at Mugnier, Rousseau, and Leflaive. In 2014 he co-founded La Lune, a Beaune restaurant with about a dozen seats at a single counter. Its cuisine of precision and deep umami made it one of the most prized reservations in town. Petit-Roy followed in 2017 in Chorey-lès-Beaune. He farms 2.1 hectares of his own regional-appellation vines biodynamically, without certification, and adds fruit from friends who farm with the same care in Burgundy’s less-celebrated villages. Even Beaune’s own wine shops now limit his bottles to three per customer.
Most Côte de Beaune villages sit on the main slope, but Saint-Romain has its vines tucked into a side valley west of Auxey-Duresses, on the way up toward the Hautes-Côtes. En Chevrot sits on a high plateau there. It is a cool site of well-draining clay with a strong limestone influence, and this 0.28-hectare parcel of chardonnay is farmed sustainably. The grapes are pressed slowly over an hour and a half. The juice ferments on indigenous yeasts and ages 12 months in used barrels, then rests several more months in tank before a light filtration.
2023 was a generous year for chardonnay, and the altitude and limestone here keep that generosity in line. Expect white peach, Meyer lemon, and quince blossom, with chamomile and a touch of hazelnut from the barrel. The finish is long and saline, pulling you back for another sip. Enjoy through 2031.
