The lieu-dit master — six generations of Meursault's mineral soul
The Roulot family's presence in Meursault is documented back to 1798, but the Domaine in its formal sense dates to 1830, when Guillaume Roulot registered as a vigneron. For over a century the estate evolved modestly, its grapes — like most of Meursault at the time — destined more for distillation than for fine wine.
The transformation began in the 1950s with Guy Roulot (1929–1982), who took over from his father, expanded the domaine through both acquisitions and his marriage to Geneviève Coche, granddaughter of Léon Coche of Meursault's celebrated Coche family, and made a decision that would prove revolutionary: to bottle each of his village lieux-dits separately, as individual single-vineyard wines.
At the time, only Premier Crus carried vineyard names on their labels; Guy's decision to extend the same precision to village-level sites — Tillets, Luchets, Tessons, Meix-Chavaux — was pioneering and quietly changed the entire culture of Meursault. The quality of the resulting wines was confirmed on the international stage in 1976, when his 1973 Meursault Charmes placed second overall among all white wines at the historic Judgment of Paris tasting, behind only Château Montelena. Guy's sudden death in 1982 at the age of 53 left the domaine in profound transition.
His son Jean-Marc Roulot, then in his early twenties, was fully committed to a career as a stage and screen actor in Paris and initially returned only for harvests. The estate was managed through a remarkable succession of interim stewards: Ted Lemon — the first American ever appointed as named winemaker at a Burgundian estate, who would later found Littorai in Sonoma — took charge in the early years after Guy's death, followed by Franck Grux, later of Olivier Leflaive, from 1986 to 1989.
In 1989, after years of returning to Burgundy during critical moments and finding himself increasingly drawn to the vineyards, Jean-Marc made the decision to take full control of the estate — arriving, in his own words, knowing "exactly what I wanted to make." He has never looked back, though he has never entirely abandoned acting either, appearing in the 2017 Burgundy-based film Ce Qui Nous Lie (released in English as Back to Burgundy ), parts of which were filmed at the domaine.
In 2011, the Domaine significantly expanded when Domaines Roulot and Comtes Lafon jointly acquired Domaine René Manuel, with Jean-Marc taking the monopole Clos des Bouchères and the Premier Cru Poruzot as his share — adding close to two hectares of exceptional terroir overnight. In 2014 he launched a separate micro-négoce operation, with wines from purchased grapes released under the Jean-Marc Roulot label rather than the domaine label — including Genevrières, Puligny-Montrachet Cailleret, Corton-Charlemagne and Chevalier-Montrachet.
Jean-Marc calls this his "Grand Cru" — the wine that most completely reveals Meursault's capacity for extraordinary depth, tension and longevity. Shallow soils over limestone, old vines, and a south-east-facing slope produce a wine of crystalline precision that needs a decade to fully open. The rarest and most sought-after wine in the range.
From 70-year-old vines in the lower part of Charmes — rounder, fleshier and more immediately generous than the Perrières, yet still mineral and built for long ageing. Placed second at the 1976 Judgment of Paris under Guy Roulot.
The Domaine's largest single holding and sole monopole, taken as Jean-Marc's share of the joint René Manuel acquisition with Comtes Lafon in 2011. Vines planted in 1980. Distinctive saline and stony character; sits up and makes the taster take notice even in the context of Roulot's extraordinary range.
Located at the base of the Premier Cru slope with deep soils, producing a more opulent, soil-driven expression than the leaner hillside cuvées — a rounder and more textured wine than the Perrières or Bouchères.
The Domaine's most iconic village wine and source of its massal selection programme — cuttings from its best performing old vines are used to propagate across the estate. Jasper Morris calls it "the most multi-layered of the village wines, with terrific density of flavour and amazing energy." Also referred to as Tessons Clos de Mon Plaisir in older vintages.
From a high-altitude plot with minimal topsoil over stony white marl — the most taut, mineral and austere of the village lieux-dits, demanding patience but rewarding it with remarkable purity and length.
Jean-Marc named his two-man theatrical play after this cuvée — a wine that shares his own combination of apparent lightness and underlying depth. Refined and floral with fine mineral tension.
One of the original Guy Roulot lieu-dit bottlings, a name now familiar to collectors worldwide. Accessible and generous in its aromatics, with good breadth of fruit and the characteristic Roulot mineral freshness.
High on the slope and facing slightly east — rich yet racy, with saline and mouth-watering precision. A perfect aperitif Meursault in character. Located north of Tillets at a slightly lower elevation.
The most recent addition among the established core lieux-dits, adjacent to Tillets on the upper slope. Despite their proximity, the two wines are quite different in character — Narvaux is notably more generous and lush where Tillets is austere and tightly wound.
Two newly purchased village lieux-dits adding yet further dimensions to the range. From the 2023 vintage Jean-Marc also produced a special Meix Chavaux Cuvée 1929 from the oldest plot within the Meix Chavaux parcel — vines planted by his grandfather — a single-parcel bottling within an already separately-bottled lieu-dit.
A blend of village-level parcels offering an accessible introduction to the house style. Remarkable for a village wine — Jean-Marc's non-interventionist approach and organic farming give it a clarity and energy rarely found at this level.
The first Meursault Premier Cru added to the micro-négoce range. Genevrières is widely considered the richest and most immediately approachable of Meursault's great Premier Crus — a striking contrast to the austere Perrières.
The most prestigious wines in the Jean-Marc Roulot micro-négoce range — Grand Crus from purchased grapes of impeccable provenance, vinified with identical philosophy to the estate wines. Released under the personal label to distinguish from the Domaine Roulot range.
The Domaine's most serious red wine — a Pinot Noir Premier Cru from the village bordering Volnay to the east. Elegant and fine-boned, it captures the hallmarks of Roulot's white winemaking philosophy applied to red.
Widely regarded as among Burgundy's finest at their respective classifications. The Bourgogne Blanc is a celebrated over-achiever; the Aligoté — vinified entirely in stainless steel, unlike all other wines — offers crystalline, tart precision rare in the appellation.
When Jean-Marc took over in 1989, he converted the entire estate to organic viticulture from the outset — farming without pesticides and tilling the soil by hand to encourage deep rooting. The estate received official organic certification in 2013. Biodynamic practices have been introduced in parallel since around 2012, without a formal biodynamic certification being sought. Grapes are hand-harvested and passed through an extremely gentle, slow press cycle before fermentation with indigenous yeasts in barrel. No cultured yeasts, no additions.
Sulphur use across the cellar has been progressively reduced since 2016, when Jean-Marc began experimenting with lower doses at the start of fermentation. New oak is held to between 10 and 30% depending on the site and vintage — never high, always subordinate to the fruit. Batonnage (lees-stirring) is used only sparingly: Jean-Marc stirs a maximum of six times, only in years of notably high acidity, and never after malolactic fermentation. The logic: richness from batonnage trades off against purity.
All white wines — with the exception of Aligoté, which goes entirely into stainless steel — spend approximately 12 months in barrel on their lees, before being racked to stainless steel tanks for a further six months prior to bottling. A light fining and gentle filtration are applied before bottling, to preserve freshness.
Grapes are hand-harvested and passed through an extremely gentle, slow press cycle before fermentation with indigenous yeasts in barrel. No cultured yeasts, no additions. Sulphur use across the cellar has been progressively reduced since 2016, when Jean-Marc began experimenting with lower doses at the start of fermentation. New oak is held to between 10 and 30% depending on the site and vintage — never high, always subordinate to the fruit. Batonnage (lees-stirring) is used only sparingly: Jean-Marc stirs a maximum of six times, only in years of notably high acidity, and never after malolactic fermentation.
The logic: richness from batonnage trades off against purity. All white wines — with the exception of Aligoté, which goes entirely into stainless steel — spend approximately 12 months in barrel on their lees, before being racked to stainless steel tanks for a further six months prior to bottling. A light fining and gentle filtration are applied before bottling, to preserve freshness.
Jean-Marc's approach to harvest timing is notably earlier than the Meursault consensus — he prefers grapes "two days too early rather than two days too late," believing over-ripeness irrevocably undermines the freshness and precision he prizes. This deliberate restraint in picking is the single most consequential decision made in any given year. New oak is held to between 10 and 30% depending on the site and vintage — never high, always subordinate to the fruit.
Batonnage (lees-stirring) is used only sparingly: Jean-Marc stirs a maximum of six times, only in years of notably high acidity, and never after malolactic fermentation. The logic: richness from batonnage trades off against purity. Roulot wines have redefined Meursault's house style — moving away from the rich, buttery opulence once typical of the appellation toward a brighter, more chiselled, mineral-driven precision. The wines reward great patience — Les Perrières in particular needs ten years or more — but the wait is universally described as worth it.
Neal Martin dubbed the Domaine "the hottest ticket in Meursault after Coche-Dury."
The lieu-dit master — six generations of Meursault's mineral soul
"Lees stirring does, I admit, create richness — but it also creates heaviness, and one loses purity."
The Roulot family is first documented in Meursault
Guillaume Roulot formally registers as a vigneron, establishing the modern Domaine
Guy Roulot (1929–1982) takes over, marries Geneviève Coche and begins the revolutionary practice of bottling each village lieu-dit separately
Guy Roulot's 1973 Meursault Charmes places second overall among whites at the Judgment of Paris — behind only Château Montelena
Guy Roulot dies suddenly at 53; Jean-Marc, then pursuing an acting career, begins returning to Meursault during critical periods
The Domaine is stewarded by interim winemakers including Ted Lemon — the first American to hold the named winemaker role at a Burgundian estate — and later Franck Grux (1986–1989)
Jean-Marc Roulot takes full control of the Domaine, converting to organic farming from his very first vintage; continues to work as an actor in parallel
Joint acquisition of Domaine René Manuel with Comtes Lafon; Jean-Marc takes the monopole Clos des Bouchères (1.38ha) and Premier Cru Poruzot as his share
The estate receives official organic certification
Jean-Marc launches the Jean-Marc Roulot micro-négoce label for wines from purchased grapes — including Grand Crus Chevalier-Montrachet and Corton-Charlemagne
Jean-Marc appears in the Burgundy film Ce Qui Nous Lie (Back to Burgundy), parts of which are filmed at the Domaine — combining his two careers in a single work
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