Alvina Pernot – grand-daughter of Puligny-Montrachet-based producer Paul Pernot – established her own label in 2018, with her husband Philippe Abadie.
About the Producer
Alvina Pernot is one of the most exciting producers of white Burgundy today. Based in Puligny-Montrachet with some incredible vineyards, this is a name to watch – creating taut and mineral styles of white Burgundy.
Alvina Pernot, granddaughter of Paul Pernot, is a young vigneron born and raised in Puligny-Montrachet. She grew up close to the family estate, as her father and uncle managed the family domaine throughout her childhood. In 2018, Alvina and her husband Phillipe Abadie created their own label.
The couple purchases the majority of their grapes from the family vineyards (ie Domaine Paul Pernot), but have now acquired three plots of their own. La Rue aux Vaches (which was long farmed and made by Domaine Paul Pernot, half of which they bought in late 2017 and inspired the creation of their domaine), as well as Clos des Noyers Bret (a vineyard that is an extension of their back-garden, added from 2020) and La Rue de Bois (the latter the vines that surround their winery, added in 2021).
At the beginning, the wines were made at Domaine Paul Pernot, with the barrels aging in the small make-shift cellar beneath their home. From the 2021 vintage, however, the wines have been made in their own winery, which they built on the outskirts of Puligny-Montrachet.
The project has grown significantly, from 8,000 bottles across seven cuvées to 35,000 bottles across 25 cuvées in 2022 (the level at which they anticipate continuing production). The focus is almost exclusively on Chardonnay, with only one red wine from the Bievaux vineyard in Santenay (a south-facing plot that is among the highest in the village). They are particularly focused on sites within Puligny-Montrachet, with an increasing number of Premiers and Grands Crus.
Although Alvina and Paul Pernot share many of the same vineyards, the wines are very different. Alvina and Philippe want to make the wines they love to drink. Versus the very traditional, richer style of Paul Pernot, their wines are leaner and more mineral. They tend to pick a few days before the family domaine, pressing more gently (favoring vertical presses), using less new oak (as well as playing with both amphorae and glass vessels for aging), little bâtonnage and lower sulfur levels.
The range has grown to, depending on the vintage, include up to around 25 cuvées. There are two Bourgogne Blanc bottlings (L’Epée and La Rue de Bois), a village Saint-Romain, two village Puligny-Montrachet wines (La Rue aux Vaches and Clos des Noyers Brets). In terms of Premier Cru sites: in Saint-Aubin, they have made Les Créots and Les Combes; in Meursault, Les Porusots, Les Charmes, La Pièce sous le Bois, and Les Perrières ; in Puligny-Montrachet, three different bottlings from Folatières (Clos des Folatières, Ez Folatières and Peux Bois), Clos de la Garenne, La Garenne, Champ Canet (sometimes from the plot of Clos de la Jacquelotte), Chalumaux, Pucelles and Caillerets. As for the Grands Crus, they work with Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet, Bâtard-Montrachet, Chevalier-Montrachet and Corton-Charlemagne.
In the Vineyard
In terms of viticulture, Alvina and Philippe manage two plots themselves, a plot of Puligny-Montrachet La Rue aux Vaches (from 2018) and a plot of Puligny-Montrachet Noyers Brets (from 2020). Apart from these two plots, the grapes are sourced from the Pernot family vineyards.
The cuvées include Meursault Premier Cru La Piece sous le Bois, which is the youngest parcel of the Paul Pernot estate planted in 2004, producing a fruity wine closer to Puligny than Meursault in terms of style. A plot in the Puligny-Montrachet Premier Cru Clos de la Garenne planted in 1956 produces a distinctly rich Puligny wine, while Puligny-Montrachet Premier Cru Les Chalumaux is another very old plot planted in 1954 by Alvina’s grandfather, its limestone bedrock with very shallow topsoil producing a Puligny-Montrachet with strong minerality. The estate’s most elegant Puligny – Puligny-Montrachet Premier Cru Les Folatières – comes from a plot planted in the 1960s and 1970s.
Her one red – Santenay Bievaux – comes from a plot in the eponymous vineyard which sits at the highest altitude in the appellation, with great southern exposure.
In the Winery
Despite Alvina and Domaine Paul Pernot sharing many of the same vineyards, there are notable differences in the winery. When Alvina started she was adamant she didn’t want to make a carbon copy of the domaine wines, but rather try to produce a wine in her own image: reflecting her own vision of wine, her own vision of Puligny-Montrachet.
With the smaller production levels, she believes an extra attention to detail becomes possible. She typically picks three to four days earlier than the domaine, opting for a fresher more linear style of wine. She hand-harvests all the fruit into small crates, as opposed to the traditional large containers, better protecting the grapes against oxidation. During the all-important pressing stage, Alvina when possible prefers to use the more traditional vertical press, rather than the more widely used modern horizontal pneumatic presses, though she currently uses both. According to Alvina, the traditional vertical presses have a distinct qualitative advantage despite losing 15 to 20% more juice than modern presses: “It reduces oxidation, provides a greater purity of juice with naturally higher acidity and therefore freshness.”
Pernot teamed up with Vinfolio to carry out the élevage on the Meursault Premier Cru Genevrières Cuvée Baudot barrel we purchased in 2022 at the annual Hospices de Beaune charity auction. Pernot’s penchant for vertical, vibrant Burgundy suits the vintage perfectly. It is now available for purchase.
