The 2019 Irancy La Grande Côte is an ample, generous wine, bursting with aromas of sweet strawberries and cherries, framed by a discreet touch of new oak. Medium to full-bodied, supple and giving, it's charming and nicely defined.
William Kelley: As I wrote several years ago, the genial Benoît Cantin took over the reins at this 15-hectare domaine in 1994 after internships in Pommard and Chambolle-Musigny, and today he works along largely organic lines, using no herbicides and harvesting by hand. The grapes are destemmed and see classical macerations, followed by maturation in barrel. This is a fine domaine—one of the best in the village—producing charming, expressive renditions of Irancy that are more contemporary in inspiration, emphasizing purity of fruit and structural suppleness, though they age well too.

There are less than fifty active viticulteurs in the relatively small northern Burgundy Appellation of Irancy, only twelve of which are situated in the commune of Irancy. Located just southwest of Chablis, Irancy is a picturesque canvas of vineyards planted on hillsides and amphitheaters, all favorably facing south for maximal sun exposure. While it shares the Kimmeridgian limestone soil also found in Chablis, the combes of vineyards here are planted exclusively to red grapes–mainly Pinot Noir–with instances of Gamay and César. Historically, the land was co-planted to vines, wheat, and cherry trees, and not unlike the reds of Sancerre, its wines were a favorite of Parisians due to its close proximity to Paris.