Pauline Passot comes from a winemaking background. The Passot family has been grower in Chiroubles for years, but Pauline’s route into winemaking was indirect, and did not at first follow this tradition. She studied business and obtained a degree in marketing, then became a sommelier and worked at the Michelin star restaurant Pierre Orsi in Lyon until 2013.

After vintages in New Zealand and Chile, the call of Beaujolais and Gamay proved too strong. Pauline knew there was much to be proud of in the potential of Chiroubles and she came back to study in Beaune before making the first wine under her own name. In 2018 she took over winemaking at the family estate, Domaine de la Grosse Pierre.

“The vineyards, mostly in Chiroubles, one of Beaujolais’ 10 named crus or top subregions, are organic or in the process of conversion. She uses whole bunches and semi-carbonic maceration in all her wines, with no added yeast, no added sulphur dioxide apart from a little at bottling, and extremely gentle extraction. The wines are aged 8–11 months in concrete tanks. They show real purity, a sensitive touch and freshness.”  -Julia Harding Master of Wine, www.jancisrobinson.com