The Somms Suggestions - Sunday Auction October 6th

If you consider yourself a Burgundy lover, you're already aware that there's an evolving wave of really talented foreign winemakers in Burgundy these years... I've picked out two, that you might already know.. If not, I believe there’s good reason to!

They share a few common traits: non of them grew up in the region, both are dedicated to biodynamic winemaking prictices, and are gaining a growing following among Burgundy enthusiasts.

Please, meet...

- photo credit: Stelle Wine

Tino Kuban // Maison Glandien

Talking about rising stars in Burgundy, it’s hard to overlook the German born, Tino. Despite his young age, this talented winemaker has already worked at renowned estates such as Mullineux in South Africa, Felton Road in New Zealand, and Philippe Bonard in Jura.

So, where does one go with such an impressive resume? Naturally, to the heart of the wine world: Burgundy!

Here, Tino works both as a winemaker and cultivates his own 1.5 hectares while also operating as a négociant, purchasing grapes not just in Burgundy, but also from Jura, Alsace, and Beaujolais.

All cuvées are vinified at his winery in Meursault, Les Jardin Vivants, a property once home to the legendary couple behind Bernard van Berg.

His approach is natural, with almost zero intervention but with an extreme focus on detail, including low yields and a rigorous selection processes.

In my opinion, his wines are a must-try due to their vibrant liveliness and beautiful precision. And I’m not alone in thinking this — they’ve quickly become some of the most sought-after wines in the region, making them quite hard to come by.That’s why I wanted to tip you that there's a great selection available on the marketplace this weekend — check it out here.

- photo credit: Ferdy Wine

Koji Nakada & Hwa Park // Domaine Lou Dumont

The couple, originally from Japan and Korea, met during their oenology studies at the University of Beaune. Together, they started the Lou Dumont project back in 2000 and later, in 2007, purchased their current domaine in Gevrey-Chambertin from winemaker Jean-Marie Fourrier of Domaine Fourrier.

Today, the couple owns 6.6 hectares of vineyards spread across different appellations in Burgundy, which they own and cultivate themselves.

The grapes from these vineyards are used for their “domaine wines,” which can be recognized by their white labels (as opposed to their négociant wines, which have orange labels).

Over the past 3-4 years, I’ve tasted many of Koji’s wines and have been consistently blown away by the quality.

His philosophy and approach in the vineyard is distinctly biodynamic, and there’s not much trickery in the cellar either, where the wines are aged for one year in a combination of new and old Chassin barriques and amphorae, adding only a small amount of sulfur when bottling.

However, this doesn’t mean you should expect—or fear—any funkiness from Koji’s cellar. Personally, I’ve had the good fortune to taste all of the domaine’s cuvées except one. These experiences have spanned across the 2019, 2020, 2021 vintages, and more recently 2023 (from barrel). The “magic” of these wines lies in the energy and intensity packed into the fruit. Which makes them quite emotional and captivating, in my opinion.

The production is very small, and this has certainly grown the demand to taste these wines. Luckily, if you don't the have allocation yourself, there’s an extraordinary opportunity to get hold of them anyways, with several cuvées and vintages available for sale on the marketplace this weekend — check out the selection here.