Few names are as closely tied to the rise of natural Burgundy as Frédéric Cossard, a vigneron who walked away from cellar additives long before it was fashionable and never looked back.
Backstory
The son of a local farmer, Cossard spent years working as a courtier, the intermediary who connects Burgundy's growers with its négociants. That role gave him an unusually deep network of trusted relationships across the Côte. In 1996 he founded Domaine de Chassorney in Saint-Romain, determined from the outset to farm organically and to make wines without inputs. In 2006 he and Laure created the négociant house SARL Frédéric Cossard, allowing them to vinify organic grapes from celebrated climats. In 2022 he handed Domaine de Chassorney to Aurélien Verdet, a winemaker who shares his values, while continuing the négociant work under his own name.
The Region
The heart of the project sits in Saint-Romain, in the hills above the Côte de Beaune. Through the négociant arm, Cossard also vinifies fruit from legendary Burgundian appellations including Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet, Chassagne-Montrachet, Chambolle-Musigny and Vosne-Romanée, alongside crus from Beaujolais, the Jura and the Languedoc.
Vineyards & Farming
The estate vines are cultivated according to biodynamic principles. Cossard plows with horses, treats homeopathically with essential oils, and keeps copper and sulfur applications to a minimum, working to preserve the health of the soils and the clear expression of each site.
Winemaking
In the cellar Cossard is a minimalist. He often works with whole clusters and extended macerations, fermenting only with indigenous yeasts and aging in old oak barrels. The wines see no fining, no filtration and no added sulfur, letting the grapes speak for themselves.
The Wines
The range spans crystalline whites such as the Bigotes Chardonnay through to perfumed, energetic reds, all carrying the transparency and tension that have made Cossard a reference point for natural Burgundy.
