A bottle of Burgundy with Burrier

Exclusive interview with Baptiste Burrier

For the second of our conversations with the makers and owners of the wineries we’re privileged to represent, we’re delighted to share an in-depth conversation with Baptiste Burrier, latest scion of the venerable Domaine Joseph Burrier.

Baptiste was magnificent conversation – and, as you’d expect from someone whose family goes back centuries in the region – came with a wealth of stories on the Burrier history and present in South Burgundy and Beaujolais.

Whilst much of the Burgundy attention is focussed on the Côte d’Or, to the north, a few minutes with Baptiste and – most pertinently – a taste of Burrier wine, shows why wise Burgundy lovers are filling their cellars with the wines of the south. Not least now that Pouilly-Fuissé has (at last) had its Premier Cru sites officially recognised.

But we’ll let Baptiste do the real talking. Charge a glass, and dive in.

Fells: Please introduce yourself and the family’s history in Burgundy

Baptiste: So I’m Baptiste Burrier, I’m a Partner and the Manager of Maison Joseph Burrier, and I represent the seventh generation of family to work the estate. The estate has been run by my father for 25 years now, but me, my cousins and my brother are going to be the next guys at the top of Maison Joseph Burrier, because my father is going to retire in the next few years.

My family have been working in the vineyards of Maconnais and Beaujolais for over five centuries, so it’s now a very long story. Regarding the Château de Beauregard, the main estate we’ve got, my family bought it in 1854 – that’s why I represent the seventh generation.

Today, talking about Maison Joseph Burrier, we are one of the leading family vineyards in the Maconnais and Beaujolais, with five estates, including Château de Beauregard, with 37 hectares in total including 22 of Pouilly-Fuissé and Pouilly-Fuissé 1er Cru. In total it represents about 60 hectares, 45 of white wines and 15 in Beaujolais, with a large diversity of appellations but mainly Pouilly-Fuissé and Pouilly-Fuissé Premier Cru and then Saint-Véran, Macon Villages and the Crus of Beaujolais like Fleurie, Moulin-à-Vent, Juliénas etc.

Fells: What makes the Maconnais and Pouilly-Fuissé so special?

Baptiste: Starting with Maconnais, I think it’s special because you are in Burgundy and you have, I think, with Maconnais whites a very good value for money. Because we have wonderful terroirs, we have a great diversity of terroirs and wines, so I think – talking more specifically about Pouilly-Fuissé – its accessibility as a major Burgundy appellation is what makes Pouilly-Fuissé special. Because, specifically with the recognition of the 22 Pouilly-Fuissé Premier Crus since 2020, representing about 20% of the total appellation, this recognition proves that here in Maconnais we have incredible terroirs comparable to Côte-d’Or terroirs. But our price is not comparable! Pouilly-Fuissé wines remain very affordable for great Burgundy wines. So I think this accessibility, this value for money for Burgundy wine, it’s very interesting. In addition we have a great diversity of terroirs, so a great variety of styles. You can have a very fresh and simple and accessible wine with a very great, beautiful Macon-Villages, but you can also have a really great Pouilly-Fuissé Premier Cru with the same quality as the best Côte-d’Or appellation like Meursault, Puligny or Chassagne. So I think the value for money, the accessibility and the diversity is what makes Maconnais and Pouilly-Fuissé very special.

Fells: Tell us more about the identification and recognition of the Premier Crus of Pouilly-Fuissé? And maybe tell us about one or two of your favourites?

Baptiste: It was a very long process. We know this story very well because my father was the ex-President of the Union of Pouilly Fuissé Wine Producers. So he led this process for almost 20 years. He was not alone in doing this job – he was the leader with all the wine growers in Pouilly-Fuissé and the INAO, the French organisation in charge of all the AOC regulation in France. So there was a lot of discussion of the rules, starting with the reputation of all the plots, the climats, in Pouilly-Fuissé. Some studies of the soils, the terroirs, in each plot of Pouilly-Fuissé. So it was a lot of discussion to achieve and choose the best terroirs in Pouilly-Fuissé. It’s 20% of the total appellation, which is pretty large, so we are happy. There are 22 Premier Crus, and what I think is interesting is that each of the 22 Premier Crus has a strong identity and personality. For example – one we know very well! – Premier Cru Vers Cras. Vers Cras is the name of the plot, and it has 100% limestone in the soil. It’s on a plateau, on a flat soils. It’s pretty unique and it’s the vineyard all around the Château. We have about four hectares of this Premier Cru, so we know it pretty well. And we know that because of the pure white limestone in the soil we have a Premier Cru with a very fresh and mineral style. Not the most round and rich of the Premier Crus, but very elegant, with this beautiful saltiness. And at the opposite you can have Les Ménétrières for example – on a slope with deep clay in the soil, facing south. You have a totally different style; powerful, rich, very long. So what is very interesting is the global quality of Pouilly-Fuissé. And each identity and personality, depending on the altitude, the exposure, the nature of the soil.

Fells: It sometimes feels that when people talk about Burgundy there’s particular emphasis on the Côte-d’Or. Do you think the recognition of these plots as Premier Crus will start drawing more attention towards Pouilly-Fuissé?

Baptiste: Totally. We have seen this evolution for a few years now. Before the Premier Crus I think we didn’t have enough credibility of our legitimacy compared to the great and well-known appellations of Côte-d’Or. So we weren’t very regarded by the fans of great Burgundy wines. But now I think consumers have realised that they can find really incredible wines here in the south of Burgundy, with quality comparable to the best appellations of Côte-d’Or, and for a much more attractive price. So yes, the recognition of the Premier Crus here in Pouilly-Fuissé is clearly changing the perception of our area.

Fells: And you make stunning wines from Beaujolais as well – tell us about your vineyards and the wines you make there.

Baptiste: We have always had vineyards in Beaujolais, with the Château de Beauregard – in Moulin-à-Vent and Fleurie.My great-grandfather and grandfather were not very interested in Beaujolais, whereas my father, being a great lover of Gamay, had this desire to exploit its potential as soon as he arrived at the estate.  He decided to restructure our vineyard, put all the plots in the best terroirs of Beaujolais and rebuild our winery in Fleurie step by step, with the focus on making great Beaujolais. So now in total we have 15 hectares of Beaujolais, divided into 6 Crus. As you know you have a large part of Beaujolais in the Beaujolais Villages appellation and a smaller part in the Crus of Beaujolais. We have never been part of the Beaujolais Nouveau trend – we are committed to producing Gamay wines with terroir identity and complexity. And I think the new generation of winemakers in Beaujolais is doing a great job at restoring Beaujolais’s image. I think the days of Beaujolais Nouveau – Beaujolais Primeur – with this kind of ultra-technical winemaking and wines without personality are behind us. There are still a few producers and there is still demand for Beaujolais Nouveau but winemakers are returning more to the concept of terroir, with more traditional winemaking methods. And the end wines are much better than Beaujolais Nouveau with real identity and great complexity and potential for ageing. So we have seen the demand increase over the last few years for this type of Beaujolais. Not for Beaujolais Primeur or Beaujolais Nouveau, but for Gamay with identity and personality.

Fells: Can you talk to us a bit about your viticultural approaches?

Baptiste: It was one of the first decisions when my father arrived at the estate 25 years ago to stop, step by step, all the chemical products. So pesticides, herbicides and so on in the vineyards. To protect our vineyards, to protect our soils, increase biodiversity in the soils – it’s very important for the quality of the grapes. We are convinced by this approach, which is very important to us.. And maybe ten years ago we decided to achieve this green viticulture with Organic Certification. Today, approximately 80% of our vineyard is certified – but all of the vineyards are farmed without pesticides or herbicides.

Fells: Tell us about your winemaking and the style of your wines?

Baptiste: Our goal for both red and white wines is to reveal our terroir. We are very close to the notion of terroir. So we try and reveal each identity of terroir with the most precision possible with slow, natural and minimal-interventionist vinification and long ageing on the fine lees. The lees are the keys for us for being able to produce wines with great ageing potential and aromatic complexity. For the most part we age our wines in wood – on fine lees, always – with this goal of revealing the terroir to make complex and great wines.

Fells: How has the Maconnais and Beaujolais been affected by climate change and how are you adapting to it in your viniculture and viticulture?

Baptiste: Going back to the style of our wines, I talk about the notion of terroir because it’s very important to us, but we also pay close attention to the balance of our wines. It’s very important for us to have the right balance between richness, structure and complexity brought by the wood, and on the other side aromatic freshness and great tension.

So returning to climate change, it’s a good question because I can talk about two major climate-related factors. The first is the more intense heatwaves. Specifically in 2022 or 2023. Two hot vintages. And the second factor is the rain, specifically in the Spring, as was the case in 2024 and 2025. Each year is different. The heat naturally leads us to bring forward the start date of the harvest. To manage the alcohol levels and the levels of acidity. We have to be careful to pick the grapes at the optimum maturity – not too much because if it goes too far you might have wines with not much acidity, so we take care about that in a hot year.

And then in the rainy years you get a lot of humidity in the vineyards, and the mildew loves humidity. So in 2024 and 2025 we tried to fight against the mildew, so we had to be particularly careful about the timing and the number of our treatments in the vineyards to control and manage this mildew. It’s not simple, because specifically for us with organic viticulture, the products we have to use are not very efficient sometimes in combatting the mildew. So we have to be very precise in the timing and the number of treatments. Sometimes we can’t do anything – when you have rain for two or three weeks in a row you have no window to go into the vineyards with a tractor to do the treatments.

So it’s not always easy, but it’s part of our jobs. We have to adapt.

Fells: What is your go-to wine for everyday drinking, and what is the bottle you bring out for special occasions? Do you have a favourite memory of a wine?

Baptiste: It depends so much on the moment and what food we have for dinner! And we have a large range. So sometimes in the Summer, for instance, or as an aperitif, a simple, very fresh Macon-Villages is very pleasant. But at the opposite end, when you have a special and very gastronomic dinner, with a creamy chicken for example, it’s better to drink a very good Pouilly-Fuissé Premier Cru. Les Ménétrières for example, or Vers Cras if you have a good fish. So it depends on the moment.

For a special memory, I have several! But one I can talk about is a particular magnum. Because we had a special event to celebrate the Pouilly-Fuissé Premier Crus and we opened a magnum of Pouilly-Fuissé Vers Cras 1981. And it was incredible, really. The level of the best Côte-d’Or wines. For a white wine of over 35 years old it was amazing. Still very fresh and mineral, with some toasted notes, some smoked notes. And we found all these different aromatic notes glass after glass. So it was really complex, really pleasant.

Fells: I guess that shows how much they deserved their Premier Cru recognition! So last question: what are your plans for the immediate future for Burrier?

Baptiste: I’m always optimistic. You need to be optimistic. But it’s a fact that consumption of wine around the world is not the same as it was ten, twenty years ago. People drink less alcohol – wine, beer etc – but talking about wine we have to be careful. We are in a transition period I think for the global consumption of wines. And for us, because my father’s going to retire, and my generation will be the next at the top. We have to be careful to keep the same quality of our wines, not to be too greedy in terms of pricing, to build again and again the great reputation of the Pouilly-Fuissé Premier Crus, because they’re pretty recent. And maybe develop our oeno-tourism activities, because there is more and more demand for private visits here.

I think we have to be careful to keep our customers all around the world and convince them they can maybe drink less, but continue to drink better. But we’re optimistic, because as long as we produce good wines, we’ll continue to sell wines. So I think the main point is to keep the high quality level of our wines while continuing to stand by our distribution partners more than ever.