Climate change has become difficult to avoid in any conversation with winegrowers in Burgundy.
France was going through another period of intense heat when we recently caught up with Domaine Geantet-Pansiot. The domaine noted that if the hot and dry conditions continued, berries could once again be particularly small this year.
That uncertainty is part of what makes wine so fascinating. Until harvest is actually finished, it is difficult to know exactly where a vintage will go.
But our conversation went well beyond the weather. Why did the domaine start investing in the Hautes-Côtes de Nuits twenty years ago? How does Fabien Geantet think about oak?
How does a Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes assembled from 17 parcels maintain its identity? And what makes the tiny Premier Cru Poissenot so distinctive?
Taken together, these questions offer an interesting look at how Geantet-Pansiot balances tradition with change.
Hautes-Côtes de Nuits: a decision made twenty years ago
Fabien Geantet joined the domaine in 2006, working alongside his father, Vincent, before taking over its management in 2018. Soon after joining, he began working on what would become the domaine’s Hautes-Côtes de Nuits project. Its first official vintage was released in 2014.
Looking at the Hautes-Côtes today, that decision may not seem particularly surprising. Twenty years ago, however, things looked very different.
The climate was considerably cooler, and in the early years the wines struggled to reach the level the domaine felt was necessary to join its existing range. Fabien's father, Vincent, was initially unconvinced by the project. At the time, the Hautes-Côtes was not widely regarded as a source of Burgundy's most exciting wines.
Fabien saw something different. He believed that as the climate became warmer, these naturally cooler vineyards could offer new opportunities.
Today, the domaine considers its Hautes-Côtes de Nuits one of the most promising wines in the range.
Temperatures here average around 3–5°C lower than in the domaine's other Côte de Nuits vineyards, and the site is also quite windy. Even in hot vintages, these conditions help the grapes retain freshness and fruit.
Cooler conditions come with their own risks, of course.
In 2024, severe frost affected the vineyard and the domaine lost around 80% of the crop.
There is another interesting detail in the vineyard. Around one third is currently planted with high & wide-trained vines, while the remaining two thirds follow the lower training more traditionally associated with Burgundy.
This ratio was not a deliberate choice. When the domaine acquired the vineyard, roughly one third was already trained high & wide. Over time, the team plans to convert these vines to a lower-trained system for easier and more consistent vineyard management.
High & wide systems generally place the fruiting zone higher above the ground, with wider spacing and lower planting densities. The additional height can reduce exposure to frost under certain conditions, while differences in vine density and canopy architecture can also affect how vines respond to heat and drought.
Geantet-Pansiot, however, ultimately remains committed to the denser, lower-trained system traditionally associated with Burgundy.
It says something about Fabien's approach: open to new sites and new opportunities, while remaining deeply rooted in Burgundian viticulture.
Oak: structure without covering the wine
Another subject we discussed was oak.
Many Geantet-Pansiot wines see a meaningful proportion of new barrels, even outside the Premier Cru and Grand Cru levels. The exact proportion changes with the vintage, but generally sits around 20–30%, increasing for wines with greater structure and ageing potential.
Fabien enjoys working with wood.
For him, oak provides a backbone to the wine — supporting the relationship between fruit and structure rather than becoming the dominant flavour itself.
The domaine therefore works exclusively with slow-roasted barrels.
The aim is to gain complexity from the oak while preserving the purity of the fruit and the expression of terroir.
Ultimately, the philosophy is straightforward: the wines should have the structure to age, but they should also be enjoyable when young.
Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes: a cornerstone built from 17 parcels
If there is one wine that helps explain Geantet-Pansiot, Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes is difficult to overlook.
It is assembled from 17 different parcels, and the domaine describes it as one of its cornerstones.
Its history runs almost as far back as the domaine itself.
Domaine Geantet-Pansiot was founded by Edmond Geantet and Bernadette Pansiot in 1954, and the Vieilles Vignes was among the wines produced in the early years of the estate.
The oldest vines used for the Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes cuvée were planted in 1929.
Seventeen parcels, however, does not mean that everything is simply blended together.
Selection begins at harvest. Only grapes meeting the domaine's standards from across those parcels are retained for the Vieilles Vignes.
The combination of these different sites has become central to the identity of the wine — and an important way of understanding the domaine's expression of Gevrey-Chambertin.
Alongside the Vieilles Vignes, Premier Cru Les Poissenot and Grand Cru Charmes-Chambertin also belong to the domaine's historic core.
The domaine’s oldest vines were planted in 1903, in the Gevrey-Chambertin parcel En Champs. These vines also provide propagation material for sélection massale, a practice in which cuttings from selected vines are used to grow new ones.
Poissenot: a cooler expression from the Combe de Lavaux
Poissenot is one of Gevrey-Chambertin's more unusual Premier Cru sites.
Even its name has an interesting story. Poisson means “fish” in French, and the name Poissenot is also associated with underground water in the area.
Very few producers work with the climat. According to Geantet-Pansiot, the principal names include Domaine Humbert Frères and Louis Jadot, although Jadot generally does not bottle Poissenot separately.
Geantet-Pansiot's first vintage from the site was 1959.
The vineyard lies around the Combe de Lavaux, facing southeast at an elevation of approximately 350 metres.
The soils are remarkably shallow. Only around 15 centimetres of topsoil sit above fractured limestone bedrock. The fissures in the limestone allow the roots to penetrate deeper into the rock.
There is also some access to underground moisture, helping the vines avoid excessive water stress during hot and dry periods.
Ten or twenty years ago, achieving full ripeness could occasionally be a challenge here. With the warming climate, that is far less of an issue today.
Poissenot and Lavaux Saint-Jacques
Poissenot sits beside the much better-known Lavaux Saint-Jacques, but the two do not express themselves in quite the same way.
According to the domaine, Poissenot is less overwhelmingly powerful than its neighbour.
Cool air coming from the forest and the Combe plays an important role.
The result is a wine that combines the structure expected from Gevrey with freshness, elegance and layers of complexity, followed by a long finish.
Production is tiny: only a little over 2,000 bottles per year.
Tradition does not mean standing still
Taken together, these stories reveal an interesting contrast at Geantet-Pansiot.
On one side are Vieilles Vignes, Poissenot and Charmes-Chambertin — wines that have been part of the domaine since its earliest decades and are deeply rooted in the history of Gevrey-Chambertin.
On the other is Fabien's decision, twenty years ago, to invest in the Hautes-Côtes de Nuits at a time when even his father questioned the idea — and to keep reassessing the potential of these vineyards as the climate changes.
The same thinking applies to oak.
The domaine does not avoid new barrels simply because lighter élevage may be fashionable today. The question is whether the wood supports the wine rather than covering it.
Perhaps that is one useful way to understand Domaine Geantet-Pansiot.
Tradition does not have to mean repeating the past unchanged. It can also mean preserving an identity while continuing to understand a vineyard that is changing around you.
Originally written in Chinese. English translation assisted by AI.
