Philippe Chatillon

After leaving Domaine de la Pinte as head winemaker, Philippe Chatillon began with 2 hectares close to Poligny, on a well exposed hill called Passenans, mainly working with typical Jura grapes Savagnin and a little bit of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, but also some Gamay and the little known Melon a Queue Rouge, which is a offshoot of Chardonnay with a tinted skin colour. Since then, the domain has evolved to include 1.95 hectares in Arbois, 1 ha on Passenans and Mesnay, and a tiny 0.20 ha on Château-Chalon. In 2019, his son Anatole Chatillon also joined the estate.

Philippe has a very special winemaking approach, which is called bioharmony: he believes that sound waves help to balance the wines in the cellar. To create this sound and energy, he uses a crystal harp and singing bowls. And of course - he is very hands-on in the vineyard too, using chemical-free and holistic methods, and often combing through the vines with a pickaxe and a backpack sprayer filled with his own homeopathic solution of manure, fermented tea, algae and fungi, to protect the vines. The grapes are harvested completely manually, and transported to the cellar in small closed boxes to prevent oxidation. Both reds and whites are aged in wooden barrels, bringing energy to the reds and rounding and smoothing the whites. The wines are not filtered or fined, and there is never any sulphur added. Production is limited to only a few thousand bottles a year.

Chatillon’s wines include both appellation wines and Vin de France wines like the Melon a Queue Rouge - Melon a Queue Rouge is not recognised as an official Jura grape variety, even though it widely agreed to be Chardonnay, albeit a slightly different strain with red stalks (hence the name - Melon, which is Chardonnay in Jura dialect, and Queue-Rouge, which means red-tailed). Appellations of his other wines include Arbois, Côtes du Jura, Crémant du Jura, Eau de vie de marc de Franche-Comté, and Macvin du Jura. The wines can be described as terroir driven, vibrant, pure, and complex, and are great wines to age for an even better reward! We personally feel his wines are some of the very best in Jura, and having enjoyed his Le Sage Vagnin, Le Grande Chaude Blanc, Amphora Rouge and Vin Jaune 2016 the night before writing this - we are actually quite obsessed with the finesse and expressions of his wines. They offer remarkable length, complexity and depth with more profound flavour characteristcs than most do. We personally hold these wines as high up as (actually-easier to find) legends such as Jean-Francouis Ganevat, Nicolas Jacob and Labet...

Why are the wines of Philippe Chatillon so special?

The wines of Philippe Chatillon are crafted after decades of experience working at Domaine de la Pinte as the head winemaker. He actually left due to a disagreement on using sulphites or not, which he does not use with his own wines. The wines are using some of the best plots in the north of Jura, and are extremely well looked after having visited them ourselves. Also, there is a very, very small production as he occupies just a few hectares

What is the best Philippe Chatillon wine?

We personally feel his Savagnins speak the best, although it is of course open to personal taste. His Amphore red blend made in Qvevri truly blew us away as well. There is a certain energy to his wimes similar to what we have experienced in wines from Labet or Ganevat. Le Sage Vagnin is the wine which has impressed us the most from the set... if thinking of a wine to drink now (as we will for sure take a Vin Jaune to age for 15 years now as well!) as well as La Grande Chaude Blanc chardonnay, which has a subtle miso and smoke touch, and a wonderfully long, evolving finish.

Does Philippe Chatillon really play music to his wines?

Yes! Favouring harp music, Philippe Chatillon does this to improve the balance and harmony of the wines. Whether it is scientifically possible to do this, we do not know - but the wines taste so amazing we have no complaints!

Does Philippe Chatillon also make Macvin?

Yes, and we can confirm tasting it with him, his Macvin not only tastes ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL, but it in the pretties bottle too. We are regretting not ordering it as we completely missed it's limited availability

What is the difference between Arbois and Poligny in wine?

Whilst Arbois is more famous for wine production, Poligny is also home to great winemakers like Valentin Morel and Lulu Wines, amongst others. However, whilst many domaines are based in the cellar-village, it is common to have multiple plots in different locations, so Philippe Chatillon for exampe has plots in Arbois and close by too, as well as in the north region of Chateau-Chalon.