The story behind Pierre-Olivier Garcia is an exciting one with many layers, similar to his wines. For much of Pierre-Olivier’s life, he has had direct insight into the riches that lie within the Côte d’Or, as his father authored the geographic maps of Burgundy. Pierre-Olivier established his domaine in 2016, planting his flag in his hometown appellation of Nuits-St-Georges, with family vineyard holdings of Aux Herbues, Les Charmois, and Aux Saint Juliens. Branching out beyond Nuits-St-Georges, Pierre-Olivier has added Aligoté, Gamay, and various Pinot Noir holdings through long-term négoce contracts to create a diverse, curated, and thoughtful portfolio of wines to work with.

One of the keys to Pierre-Olivier’s success has been his keen understanding of the terroir and microclimates of Nuits-St-Georges, and more specifically, what vineyards would fare well into the future. What was previously overlooked due to its lack of ability to attain ripeness, access to sun exposure, and the impact of the surrounding nature, Pierre-Olivier’s foresight makes vineyards like Les Charmois a gem in the current climate of Burgundy. 

Pierre-Olivier is doing everything right in the vineyard, and taking it to another level in the cellar. He farms his vineyards holistically—domaine and négoce alike—and spends almost all his time there, as evident in his rustic hands. As grapes enter the cellar, everything is done by hand, and moved by gravity. All of his wines, with the exception of Aligoté and Beaujolais, see contact with the baie par baie or berry-by-berry method, using scissors to cut grapes one by one from the bunch.

To use this winemaking method on all your wines is, frankly, mad. Beyond imparting this technique, Pierre-Olivier uses a layering method in the tanks for vinification: whole cluster, berry-by-berry, destemmed, repeat. This time-consuming process encourages highly perfumed, detailed wines, with precise, delicate florals, yet hedonistically expressive complexity. Pierre-Olivier’s wines from Beaujolais through Corton are singular in so many ways, and the juice is worth the squeeze in the way he does things.