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Domaine de Chassorney

Frédéric Cossard inherited his love for wine from his grandfather, who used to grow grapes for personal use. While working as an engineer in the milk industry, Cossard travelled to Burgundy and explored different wines. Eventually, he decided to make a switch.

Without any family connections in the wine industry or external financing, it was difficult for him to find vineyards in the region. After difficult negotiations with the bank, Cossard established Domaine de Chassorney in Saint Romain in 1996. Today, he cultivates over 10 hectares in various Burgundian villages under the name Domaine de Chassorney. Additionally, he purchases grapes that he sells under his own name: Frédéric Cossard. He provides personalized guidance to growers for taking care of their vines and works alongside them in the vineyards to ensure that the work is carried out to his high standards.

From the start, Cossard has grown his grapes organically and has since incorporated many biodynamic methods. Drawing from his experience of making raw, unpasteurized cheese, he applied the same philosophy to winemaking. He describes his winemaking method as "homoeopathic," focusing on tailored treatments and remedies for each parcel of grapes. He does not add any chemicals, including sulfites, and the fermentation process is spontaneous, without temperature control, and can last several months.

The wines are aged in barrels for one year, during which they are not racked or stirred. Cossard does not use any fining or filtration in his wine production, and the barrels are sterilized with ionized negative oxygen molecules instead of chemicals like sulfites.

Recently, Cossard has started experimenting with qvevri as an alternative to oak. Some of his wines come in two variants - qvevri and regular - as he aims to achieve perfect micro-oxygenation in the wines, binding the phenolics into a compact, age-worthy structure while retaining early approachability.