Meet Raphaëlle Guyot, who is recovering lost terroirs in interesting parts of Bourgogne
UK agent: Newcomer Wines
Raphaëlle Guyot studied winegrowing and winemaking at Beaune, graduating in 2015. This was followed up with spells working with some illustrious domaines (Thibault Liger-Belair, Domaine de la Grange Tiphaine and Vincent Pinard), before she set out on her own in 2018. She’s now based in her home town of Puisaye-Forterre in Yonne, which is between Sancerre and Chablis, and the first wine she made was from a single hectare of previously neglected Pinot Noir vines in 2019. This was supplemented by a further hectare of Pinot Noir (Robinettes) and then in 2020 and 2021 she began planting mass selected Chardonnay in a 1.75 ha plot. She now has 3 hectares, but wants to expand this to 6.
This is an interesting area, and before phylloxera there used to be lots of vineyards here. Through studying old texts, Raphaelle identified promising patches of land for planting, which led to the Chardonnay plantings that are now just coming online. In all she has 10 hectares that she can plant, but for the time being she’s also buying in some grapes from the Grand Auxerrois.
Farming is organic, and the new vineyards are planted at a density of 4500 vines/hectare, which allows for the use of cover crops, which is much harder at the traditional Burgundian density of 10 000 vines/hectare. The fruiting wire is higher than normal, too, at 80 cm, which reduces frost and disease risk, and is nicer to farm. Winemaking here is natural, with the only addition a small dose of sulfites.
Raphaëlle Guyot Galatée Aligoté 2022
This spends a year in tank. It’s lively and mineral with real finesse to the apple and pear fruit with some spice and lively acidity. Juicy with a slightly sour finish. 91/100
Raphaëlle Guyot La Valse Sauvignon Blanc 2022 Saint Bris, Bourgogne
Floral and fine with lovely texture to the melon, pear and citrus fruit. This has lovely weight with nice texture and some fine herbal notes. 93/100
Raphaëlle Guyot Le Baiser Pinot Noir 2022 Irancy, Bourgogne
Sappy and fine with lovely acidity and a lively personality. This has amazing texture with bright raspberry and cherry fruit. Really fine with a lovely finish. 94/100
Raphaëlle Guyot Les Robinettes Pinot Noir 2022 Vin de Pays de L’Yonne
Destemmed and aged for 10 months in old barrels. Fine, pure and chalky with a nice graininess. Lovely weight and focus with vivid black cherry fruit and some raspberry crunch. Very fine. 94/100
