Antoine Lepetit de la Bigne has long been one of Burgundy’s most quietly influential forces. He spent eight years at Domaine Leflaive, where he cofounded the École Du Vin et des Terroirs with Anne-Claude Leflaive — an intimate classroom in the Côte d’Or where growers came to deepen their understanding of soil, root, sky, and vine through the lens of biodynamics. After Anne-Claude’s death in 2015, Antoine stepped away from Leflaive and began consulting with a small circle of like-minded growers. One thing led to another, as it does when curiosity meets opportunity. The first vintage of La Pierre Ronde arrived in 2021.
Antoine does not yet farm any vineyards of his own, but the relationships he cultivated over fifteen years of biodynamic consulting gave him access to exceptional fruit from growers who share his philosophy. The wines are unmistakable: bright with energy, rigorous in structure, and pulsing with the clarity of someone who has spent a lifetime listening closely to the earth. Antoine works across barrels, foudres, and amphorae, choosing vessels to serve the terroir rather than impose a house style. All fermentations use ambient yeasts. Minimal sulfur throughout. He is based in Beaune and concentrates on the whites of the Côte de Beaune, with a growing range that now includes Meursault village and premier cru, aligoté from old vines near Corton, and a small amount of pinot noir.
Cuvée Ronde is Antoine’s pinot noir, a Bourgogne-level red from the Côte de Beaune. The fruit is sourced from Volnay, fermented with whole-cluster inclusion and a one-to-two-week maceration with pump-overs and punch-downs. The wine is aged for ten to twelve months in used barrels and amphora, then blended and rested in tank before bottling.
Antoine is primarily known for his whites, making this cuvée all the more interesting. It carries the same precision and clarity that define La Pierre Ronde, applied to pinot noir with a light, unhurried hand. Expect notes of sour cherry and wild strawberry with fine tannins and a mineral thread that ties it to the limestone beneath.
