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Producers
Domaine Stéphane Magnien
When it comes to beautiful burgundies, there is a lot of choice. So it might come as a surprise that Domaine Stéphane Magnien, with its tiny 4.5-hectares, is one of the best Pinot Noirs of the region. Producing stunning wines (that won’t break the bank) for over four generations, this little producer is definitely worthy of a place on your watch list.
Organic before it was fashionable
His terroir might be small, but Stephane is a man who knows what is what. He proudly states that no chemicals have ever been used on the land (long before organic farming was a thing, Stephane’s father and grandfather were ploughing by horse and harvesting by hand). The plants are nearly all Pinot Tordu (an ancient aromatic clone of Pinot Noir) vines - far less robust than its modern equivalent but said to produce a much more elegant juice. “The important thing”, he says “is to let the wine speak of its terroir, not its maker”.
Wines are rising in quality but not in release price
As winemaker, Stephane is an overachiever, a top-of-the-class swot who delivers far, far more than asked for. Producing superb old-fashioned burgundies that show off the Pinot Noir’s complex, silky fruit to its best advantage, evidently, his yields are low. His 10 appellations all are worth a taste (the 2016 vintage being of particular interest to wine fans) and his two Grands Crus really just cherries on the cake. However, it is his Premieres Crus that have caught the attention of both oenologues and investors of late. The Faconnières is a superb example of what a great vineyard this is, whilst Les Sentiers, sitting just beneath Bonnes Mares, was ranked third among the wines from this region with respect to the number of prizes won: the Guide Hachette des Vins awarded the 2013 vintage 1 Star and the 2012 vintage Cité.
Notable facts and vintages
  • Expect prices to coincide with the increasing rarity of the burgundian producer/grower; Magnien himself suggesting succession charges may force out producers who ‘can’t, or don’t want to charge astronomical prices for bottles’.
  • 2010 Domaine Stéphane Magnien’s Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru was awarded Jancis Robinson’s 18/20, noting the wine’s “long finish” and anticipated maturity in 2032, bearing in mind the region’s pinot noir yields were reduced to half in 2010.
  • 2013 Domaine Stéphane Magnien Morey-St-Denis appears on Decanter’s “Top-Value Red Burgundy: Hidden gems in the Cote des Nuits” list in 2018, and the 2011 vintage was awarded “One Star” from Le Guide Hachette du Vin.
  • 2010 Domaine Stéphane Magnien Clos St Denis Grand Cru received a score of 94 points both from Tim Atkin and Austria’s ultimate “Weineguide”, Falstaff Magazin.