Notify me
2020 Irancy
Benoît Cantin
You might be caught off guard by how delicious this unassuming bottle of Irancy from the Auxerrois region of Burgundy is. The Cantin family is making some of the most surprising and gorgeous wines we’ve started to import recently, and I am completely hooked. This cuvée blends Pinot Noir from lieux-dits in and around the Irancy appellation, an amphitheater of vineyards growing on Kimmeridgian limestone soil—like its neighbor in Chablis. A vibrant rouge, it has notes of violet, fennel seed, and black pepper coiled together around a chalky core.
—Jane Augustine
Wine Type: | red |
Vintage: | 2020 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | Pinot Noir |
Appellation: | Irancy |
Country: | France |
Region: | Burgundy |
Producer: | Benoît Cantin |
Winemaker: | Benoît Cantin |
Vineyard: | 30-40 years, 16 ha total |
Soil: | Kimmeridgian limestone |
Aging: | Wines are aged in 228L oak barrels (15% new) for one year; The oak comes from the family’s own land and from the Les Bertranges forest. |
Farming: | Sustainable |
Alcohol: | 13% |
More from this Producer or Region

2018 Irancy “La Grande Côte”
France | Burgundy
From a single-vineyard parcel on one of the family’s most primely positioned slopes, this bottling has more depth, concentration, and brambly tannic punch.

2019 Morey Saint Denis 1er Cru “La Riotte”
France | Burgundy
Old vines planted just after WWII, spicy and deep, rich and full.

2020 Irancy “Palotte”
France | Burgundy
Don’t miss this opportunity to experience beautiful, old-school, age-worthy red Burgundy from our newest domaine in the region!

2019 Irancy “La Grande Côte”
France | Burgundy
Brambly, vigorous, and gourmand with sour plum, fig and a touch of smoke.

2021 Irancy “Cuvée Emeline”
France | Burgundy
Emeline is sourced from the domaine’s favorite bits of their favorite parcels and then long-aged in barrel for a deeper, darker Irancy.

2021 Bourgogne Passetoutgrain
France | Burgundy
Ready to drink tonight, it’s both elegant and eminently quaffable with explosive aromatics.

2022 Beaune 1er Cru “Les Montrevenots”
France | Burgundy
From the first taste in barrel, I immediately understood what Antoine wanted to accomplish stylistically, and the results were love at first taste.

2022 Gevrey-Chambertin
France | Burgundy
Classic Gevrey, with an emphasis on forward fruit and pleasure, great structure as well.

2022 Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Beaune Blanc “Le Mont et Forêt”
France | Burgundy
January Club Bianco ~ Full of that perky, palate-opening freshness and vigor that’s so essential in a blanc.

2022 Chassagne-Montrachet
France | Burgundy
The wine’s faint hint of the sea makes me yearn for grilled lobster or trout amandine.
About The Producer
Benoît Cantin
There are less than fifty active viticulteurs in the relatively small northern Burgundy Appellation of Irancy, only twelve of which are situated in the commune of Irancy. Located just southwest of Chablis, Irancy is a picturesque canvas of vineyards planted on hillsides and amphitheaters, all favorably facing south for maximal sun exposure. While it shares the Kimmeridgian limestone soil also found in Chablis, the combes of vineyards here are planted exclusively to red grapes–mainly Pinot Noir–with instances of Gamay and César. Historically, the land was co-planted to vines, wheat, and cherry trees, and not unlike the reds of Sancerre, its wines were a favorite of Parisians due to its close proximity to Paris.
Benoît, with the continued support of his father, Bernard, runs the domaine, farming 16 hectares in Irancy across 10 different lieux-dits. Following in the footsteps of many Cantin generations before him, Benoît began working at the domaine in 1991, bottling his first solo vintage in 1994. His wines display a rustic elegance, an earthy, Burgundian soulfulness, and a structure and depth well above their price point. They are wines of character, with a strong sense of place and typicity, as well as great freshness thanks to the limestone soils in which they are grown.
About The Region
Burgundy
In eastern central France, Burgundy is nestled between the wine regions of Champagne to the north, the Jura to the east, the Loire to the west, and the Rhône to the south. This is the terroir par excellence for producing world-class Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
The southeast-facing hillside between Dijon in the north and Maranges in the south is known as the Côte d’Or or “golden slope.” The Côte d’Or comprises two main sections, both composed of limestone and clay soils: the Côte de Nuits in the northern sector, and the Côte de Beaune in the south. Both areas produce magnificent whites and reds, although the Côte de Beaune produces more white wine and the Côte de Nuits more red.
Chablis is Burgundy’s northern outpost, known for its flinty and age-worthy Chardonnays planted in Kimmeridgian limestone on an ancient seabed. Vézelay is a smaller area south of Chablis with similar qualities, although the limestone there is not Kimmeridgian.
To the south of the Côte de Beaune, the Côte Chalonnaise extends from Chagny on its northern end, down past Chalon-sur-Saône and encompasses the appellations of Bouzeron in the north, followed by Rully, Mercurey, Givry, and Montagny.
Directly south of the Chalonnaise begins the Côte Mâconnais, which extends south past Mâcon to the hamlets of Fuissé, Vinzelles, Chaintré, and Saint-Véran. The Mâconnais is prime Chardonnay country and contains an incredible diversity of soils.
More from Burgundy or France
2022 Bourgogne Blanc
La Soeur Cadette France | Burgundy
2022 Bouzeron Aligoté
Domaine de Villaine France | Burgundy
2022 Givry Rouge 1er Cru “A Vigne Rouge”
Domaine François Lumpp France | Burgundy
2023 Vézelay Blanc “La Châtelaine”
Domaine de la Cadette France | Burgundy
2022 Fixin
René Bouvier France | Burgundy
2018 Nuits Saint Georges 1er Cru “Les Pruliers”
Domaine Taupenot-Merme France | Burgundy
2021 Aloxe-Corton
Domaine Follin-Arbelet France | Burgundy
2022 Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru “Les Vaucrains”
Domaine Robert Chevillon France | Burgundy
2022 Givry 1er Cru Blanc “Crausot”
Domaine François Lumpp France | Burgundy
2022 Volnay 1er Cru “Clos des Angles”
Domaine Lucien Boillot & Fils France | Burgundy
2022 Chablis 1er Cru “Vaillons”
Henri Costal France | Burgundy
2022 Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru “Les Chaignots”
Domaine Robert Chevillon France | Burgundy
2022 Bourgogne Blanc
La Soeur Cadette France | Burgundy
2022 Bouzeron Aligoté
Domaine de Villaine France | Burgundy
2022 Givry Rouge 1er Cru “A Vigne Rouge”
Domaine François Lumpp France | Burgundy
2023 Vézelay Blanc “La Châtelaine”
Domaine de la Cadette France | Burgundy
2022 Fixin
René Bouvier France | Burgundy
2018 Nuits Saint Georges 1er Cru “Les Pruliers”
Domaine Taupenot-Merme France | Burgundy
2021 Aloxe-Corton
Domaine Follin-Arbelet France | Burgundy
2022 Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru “Les Vaucrains”
Domaine Robert Chevillon France | Burgundy
2022 Givry 1er Cru Blanc “Crausot”
Domaine François Lumpp France | Burgundy
2022 Volnay 1er Cru “Clos des Angles”
Domaine Lucien Boillot & Fils France | Burgundy
2022 Chablis 1er Cru “Vaillons”
Henri Costal France | Burgundy
2022 Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru “Les Chaignots”
Domaine Robert Chevillon France | Burgundy
Kermit once said...

Kermit once said...
A good doctor prescribed the wine of Nuits-Saint-Georges to the Sun King, Louis XIV, when he suffered an unknown maladie. When the king’s health was restored the tasty remedy enjoyed a vogue at court. Lord, send me a doctor like that!
Inspiring Thirst, page 117