Roche de Bellene
About Maison Roche de Bellene
Renowned winemaker Nicolas Potel (son of Pousse d'Or's Gerard Potel) heads up a number of successful winemaking ventures in the Cote d'Or including his own Domaine de Bellene, his negociant business Maison Roche de Bellene, and a more recent specially curated collection of finished wines, which are a part of his "Collection Bellenum." Potel has endeavoured to make the most of his finely honed tasting skills and wildly impressive list of contacts in the Cote d’Or with Collection Bellenum. Unlike the domaine wines of his Domaine de Bellene or his negociant wines, Maison Roche de Bellene, Collection Bellenum, is a carefully cultivated and constantly evolving range of wines which he has sourced straight from other producer’s cellars provenance.
A pioneer of a great many things in the region, his groundbreaking viticultural techniques to improve ripeness and concentration have been adopted across the whole of Burgundy. A significant proportion of the improved quality of wines and winemaking in the home of Pinot Noir is largely thanks to the Potel family.
An iconic personality of the Burgundian winemaking scene. He, alongside his late father, were really the pioneers of the great trend we are currently witnessing of winemaking dynasties moving away from cooperative-style producers to domaines (i.e. purchasing and cultivating their own holdings). Whilst naturally an extremely expensive shift to make, it without doubt allows for total control from vine to bottle and, in turn, superior quality wine.
A true master of that most prized aspect of Burgundian winemaking - an expression of individual terroir. Nicolas Potel was making 120 wines from 50 different appellations by the age of 33! Prodigious talent has now been mixed with vast experience, and year-after-year Maison Roche de Bellene makes some of the most coveted wines in Burgundy.
