When the Société Jacques Bollinger purchased Chanson in 1999, it recognized the estate's enormous but unexploited potential. With ownership in 10 of Beaune's Premier Crus, Chanson represented a centuries-old tradition of world-class winemaking and the estate itself-with its landmark 15th-century bastion still used as a cellar-offered all the necessary elements to make superb wines.

Bollinger appointed a family friend and industry veteran, Burgundian Gilles de Courcel, as the new general manager and brought in winemaker Jean-Pierre Confuron, son of famed Burgundian winemaker Jean-Jacques "Jacky" Confuron and an accomplished enologist in his own right.

"The first step," explains Confuron, "was to make sure that the vineyards were all plowed properly." In Burgundy, the roots of the vines must reach the subsoil in order for the terroir to express itself using the grape as its vehicle-a fundamental tenet of Burgundian winemaking. Confuron purchased state-of-the-art plowing equipment, but adds that in some cases, "we began using horses to plow where tractors couldn't fit so that the vines in every corner of the vineyards could grow deep enough in the soil." He also eliminated machine harvesters and implemented handpicking.

"The most important change we made," Confuron emphasizes, "is that we now limit yields to a maximum of 35 hl per ha." Chanson achieves this through aggressive and vigilant pruning in the vineyard, "with a maximum of five to six bunches per vine."

Next, the estate acquired two new sorting tables and hired a specialized team for selection of the fruit. "There are now 10 people per sorting table at harvest time," says De Courcel. "This way we can ensure that only the best grapes are used for vinification."

De Courcel and Confuron also purchased new vats to vinify each plot individually and implemented temperature-controlled maceration with "as many whole bunches as possible, stems and all." This ensured that ideal sugar and acidity levels were obtained without losing the "freshness" and "purity" of the fruit. Gentle, extended pigeage (pushing down of the caps) is key to the Chanson philosophy: "Sometimes we spend two to three weeks pushing down the caps," says De Courcel. "This optimizes extraction and obtains the rich aromas in the wine."

Lastly, Chanson established new partnerships with the best growers in Burgundy to source fruit and must for vinification in the winery's cellars. These include plots in Puligny-Montrachet and Clos de Vougeot among many other illustrious vineyards.

"One might say that our predecessors [at Chanson] had grown a bit lazy," adds De Courcel. "Today, we never hurry alcoholic or malolactic fermentation." Indeed, malolactic fermentation begins naturally, only when temperatures begin to rise in spring. "We keep the wine on its lees as long as possible. This is the way to ensure the freshness, purity, and aroma of the wine and to achieve the true expression of the Burgundian terroir."