If the cartographer drawing the the border of the Santenay appellation had had hiccups, then this vineyard would have been located within it. It’s within a blade of grass of being a village wine, but as it stands it can only call itself a humble Bourgogne Blanc, but brothers, Leniac and Samuel Bachey-Legros, feel the vineyard is venerable enough to appear on the label, so you will see it says ‘Saint Martin’, which is the lieu dit (or ‘named place’), as these wonderful old vines deserve to have a billing.

The quality is certainly up to village level, so this is something of a bargain. It has that lovely touch of struck flint or matchstick, which adds so much interest to the aromas and flavours, but it doesn’t dominate or become a one note wine, there’s a lot of lime as well as chalk and quince and a little nutty creaminess from the oak. Drink this delicious wine from now until around 2028. 13% alc.

“It tastes fancy.”- James’s daughter, Lucy, aged 16