Chandon de Brialles Savigny Les Beaune Les Saucours AOC France

This is Savigny with shoulders — not the light, easy stereotype.
In 2020, “Les Saucours” presents as ripe, savoury and surprisingly serious.

Visual: Medium ruby with a slightly darker core than a classic Savigny, showing the vintage’s concentration.

Nose: Raspberry, wild strawberry, cranberry compote, and cherry skins. Under that, earthy beetroot, dried rose petals, fennel seed, and a chalk-dust mineral note. Wood is practically invisible, because the domaine refuses to dress Pinot in oak perfume.

Palate: Lithe but not light. Crunchy red fruit up front, followed by a firm mineral line, fine salty tannins and a spicy undercurrent (white pepper, clove stem, thyme stalk). Good acidity keeps the wine taut. Mouthfeel is tense, elegant, spicy and mineral-driven — not plush.

Finish is long for a village-level wine: red berries, dry herbs, savoury tea-leaf tannin.

Think of this as the “Savigny that refuses to be simple.”

Why the Year Matters (2020 Vintage Impact)

2020 brought heat, early harvest and concentration. Many villages wines in Burgundy became more generous, even bordering on “too easy.”
Here’s why Saucours didn’t go soft:

• The site is lower-lying, on cooler, clay-limestone soils, which slow ripening and help acidity.
• Old vines = thicker skins, giving tannin definition rather than jammy fruit.
• Briailles’ biodynamic farming + minimal extraction kept it precise, not overcooked.
• Instead of fatness, the warm year adds extra depth without losing bite.

The vintage gave richness; Saucours turned it into structure and spice.

Drinking Window

• Start drinking: 2024–2026
• Peak: 2027–2034
• Max life: 2036 if well cellared
• Drinkers wanting “soft Burgundy now” should look elsewhere. This has energy, not fluff.
• Decant 30–45 minutes if drinking young.