ABOUT THE PRODUCER:  Pataille was born and bred in Marsannay, the northernmost village of the Côte d’Or. His great grandfather was a vigneron, though most of the family vines were sold before his grandfather came of age. Despite this, from a young age, the vineyards of Marsannay were Pataille’s playground. His father, a bus driver, was a great friend of Jean Fournier and would help with pruning and harvest, always with his two boys, Sylvain and Laurent, in tow. Pataille speaks with great affection of these times, and of helping his grandfather tend the family’s small plot of Aligoté—a parcel of old vines that Sylvain still works today and calls Les Auvonnes au Pépé in honour of his forebear. Not only does Pataille run his own 17-hectare, progressive Marsannay Domaine to the highest standards (details below), but he also consults with at least twenty top-flight growers in the Côte-d’Or and Côte Chalonnaise. He insists on not discussing the names of his clients, but let’s just say that there are some extraordinary Domaines on his roster.