The Quiet Revolution in Chassagne-Montrachet: Meet Antonin Pillot
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And Join Antonin in Singapore This March
By Cris Lu | Our Wine Community by Corney & Barrow
There is a particular kind of generational transition in Burgundy. It is the kind where the next generation joins the family domaine and finds that the world around them demands a different response than it did a decade ago. The tradition stays; the methods evolve.
Antonin Pillot is doing exactly that at Domaine Jean-Marc Pillot in Chassagne-Montrachet.
We are thrilled to welcome Antonin to Singapore for two exclusive events in early March. Before you book your seat (and you should as they'll go quickly), here's why this is a producer worth knowing.
A Chassagne Dynasty: From Jean-Baptiste to Antonin
The Pillot roots in Chassagne-Montrachet trace back to 1910, when Jean-Baptiste Pillot founded the domaine. It passed to his son Alphonse, then to Jean, and in 1991 Jean-Marc took over, expanding to roughly 15 hectares across Chassagne-Montrachet, Puligny-Montrachet, Meursault, Santenay, Rully, and Montagny. Antonin's arrival in 2019 marks the fifth generation.
The portfolio reads like a masterclass in Côte de Beaune terroir: Premier Cru whites from Macherelles alongside Premier Cru reds from Clos Saint-Jean and Macherelles. A breadth few single domaines can match.
Before joining his father, Antonin studied Wine Trade and Wine Tourism at the Institut Jules Guyot in Dijon and spent a formative period at Bouchard Père & Fils, gaining a panoramic view of terroir across the Côte d'Or.
He arrived home with ideas.
“People no longer have cellars at home, so they expect wines that are more ready to drink... I want to produce something accessible after just two years of ageing.”
— Antonin Pillot, 5th Generation Winemaker, Domaine Jean-Marc Pillot
(Read the full interview on Boulevard Magazine)
What Antonin Changed (and Why It Matters)
The Organic Conversion
Domaine Jean-Marc Pillot received organic certification in 2024. This was not a sudden pivot. The domaine had long practised reasoned viticulture, ploughing vineyards, avoiding herbicides on most parcels, harvesting by hand. Full commitment meant eliminating the last chemical inputs, a journey that began around 2018.
The first formal trials started on Chassagne-Montrachet Premier Cru Les Macherelles, testing the approach on one of the estate's most important vineyards before rolling it across the full 15 hectares.
Antonin is measured about the impact: "The vines breathed better and the soil became richer." But when pressed on whether it's making a tangible difference to wine quality, he offers a winemaker's answer: "I'll tell you in 30 years' time."
Traditional Winemaking, Thoughtfully Refined
The whites are hand-harvested, gently crushed but not destemmed, then pressed. After a light cold settling, the wines go to barrel for a long, slow fermentation, stay on fine lees for twelve months, then rack into tank for six months before bottling — no cold stabilisation needed.
Antonin's hand shows in the details. He switched to indigenous yeasts from 2020. At village level, the domaine now prefers 350-litre barrels over the standard 228-litre pièce, lessening oak influence and slowing oxygenation. For Premier Crus, standard barrels remain, with some cuvées kept for sixteen months. Barrels are used for three years: a third new, a third one year old, a third two years old; with older casks always re-used for the same vineyards.
The reds are made with real conviction: long cuvaison, pre-fermentation cold maceration of destemmed grapes, twelve months in barrel (30% new oak maximum), then six months in tank.
The Village Blend Philosophy
A detail that reveals Antonin's thinking: the Village Chassagne-Montrachet Blanc used to carry the lieu-dit 'Les Masures.' From 2021, Antonin dropped it in favour of blending fruit from seven Chassagne parcels. His reasoning? The blend adds acidity and concentration a single site can't deliver at village level.
A counterintuitive move in a region obsessed with site specificity and one the critics have consistently praised.
What Makes Chassagne-Montrachet Special?
If Puligny-Montrachet is the ballerina and Meursault is the opera singer, Chassagne is the one who can do both, and probably arm-wrestle you afterwards.
Chassagne-Montrachet devotes roughly a third of its vineyard to Pinot Noir, a proportion that dwarfs Meursault (under 4%) and Puligny (under 2%). It is the only village in the golden triangle where red wine is a serious, sustained tradition. The Pillot domaine embodies this duality. Where many Chassagne estates have replanted Pinot Noir with Chardonnay to chase white wine premiums, Jean-Marc and Antonin maintain a serious commitment to their reds. Wines like the Clos Saint-Jean that offer genuine depth and surprise everyone who encounter them for the first time.
The Premier Cru whites are the crown jewels. The domaine holds parcels across Caillerets, Morgeot, Les Vergers, Baudines, Chenevottes, La Maltroie, Macherelles, and Champs Gain. From our Singapore cellar, the Macherelles 1er Cru is the one to try: a climat that delivers both power and precision, rivalling bottles at twice its price.
Join Antonin in Singapore: Two Exclusive Events
Winemaker Dinner | Sunday, 2nd March
Venue: Royal China at Raffles Hotel Sentosa
Time: 7:00pm Aperitif | 7:30pm Dinner
Format: Six-course Cantonese dinner paired with Antonin's wines
Price: $320 net per person
Seats: Limited
Chassagne-Montrachet meets Cantonese cuisine, with the winemaker at the table walking you through each pairing.
Guided Masterclass | Monday, 3rd March
Venue: Atomi, Mandarin Gallery, Orchard Road
Time: 6:30pm Aperitif | 7:00pm Masterclass commences
Format: Sit-down guided tasting, four wines
Capacity: 20 pax only
The Lineup:
- Chassagne-Montrachet Rouge Vieilles Vignes
- Chassagne-Montrachet Les Macherelles 1er Cru Blanc
- Chassagne-Montrachet Les Macherelles 1er Cru Rouge
- Chassagne-Montrachet Clos Saint-Jean 1er Cru Rouge
Twenty seats, four wines, one winemaker. The Macherelles blanc-rouge comparison alone is worth the entry: same vineyard, same producer, two completely different expressions.
Why You Should Be Paying Attention Now
There is a window with domaines like Pillot that experienced buyers recognise, when the next generation has arrived, quality has stepped up, but prices haven't caught up. Antonin's organic certification, thoughtful cellar refinements, and blending philosophy are producing wines the market hasn't fully priced in.
The whites, from a $52 Bourgogne to the $130 Macherelles Blanc 1er Cru, represent some of the strongest value in Burgundy today. The reds, particularly Clos Saint-Jean, remain one of the Côte de Beaune's great undiscovered pleasures.
This is the kind of producer you want to build a relationship with early. Starting on the 2nd of March wouldn't be a bad idea.
Book your place now:
📧 owcsg@corneyandbarrow.com | 📞 +65 6221 8530
Winemaker Dinner — Sunday 2nd March, Royal China at Raffles Hotel Sentosa, $320 per person
Guided Masterclass — Monday 3rd March, Atomi Mandarin Gallery, 20 seats only
Cris Lu is Senior Account Manager for Private Clients at Corney & Barrow Singapore. For personalised recommendations or to discuss any wines mentioned in this article, reach her at cris.lu@corneyandbarrow.com.