A blind tasting is always a great way to reveal a person. And this episode starts exactly there. We sit down with Laurent Delaunay, the winemaker who revived the historic Burgundy estate Edouard Delaunay, and follow him through a story shaped by setbacks, intuition and bold reinvention. I loved hearing Laurent explain how he rebuilt everything after losing his family winery, how he approaches tasting after recovering from COVID, and why Asia has become one of his most strategic markets. We dive into his work at the Burgundy Wine Committee, tackling climate challenges and exploring the rise of the hautes-côtes, and we talk about the excitement of having his daughter join the family adventure. Tune in to discover an inspiring journey driven by resilience, vision and a genuine love for pinot noir.
Watch the show with Laurent Delaunay
A summary of the interview with Laurent Delaunay
A family legacy marked by collapse and rebirth
Laurent recounts how the Delaunay family has been rooted in Burgundy wine for more than a century, beginning in 1893 with his great-great-grandfather. When he joined his father in the early 1990s, personal and economic difficulties forced the family to sell the historic winery. Unsatisfied working under a large group, Laurent and his wife Catherine, both winemakers, left everything and moved to the Languedoc with no vineyards and no capital.
There, they founded Les Jamelles, a project that quickly found success with varietal wines, enabling them years later to return to Burgundy. In 2017, Laurent finally bought back the family estate, completing what he calls “closing the circle” after 24 years.
Exploring Pinot Noir through blind tasting
The interview takes place around a blind tasting of three pinot noirs, one of them Laurent’s own. Laurent and I explore each wine through color, acidity, structure, ripeness and spice. Laurent speaks about relearning to taste after losing his sense of smell from COVID-19, adopting a “geosensory” approach that emphasizes sight, texture and mouthfeel.
Why Asia, and why now?
Laurent Delaunay explains his deep commitment to the Asian market, which he visits several times a year. This particular trip to Hong Kong marks the beginning of a major step for the revived Edouard Delaunay estate: for the first time, selected vintages are entering auction through Bonhams.
Because the estate was relaunched only five years ago, Laurent emphasizes the importance of establishing reference prices and proving value among collectors. He highlights that the house has already received more than 700 scores above 90 points in the last five years: an unusually high level of critical recognition for Burgundy.
Challenges and responsibilities at the Burgundy Wine Committee
As president of the Burgundy Wine Committee (formerly BIVB), Laurent describes the organization’s mission: promotion, research and development, and market intelligence. Much of the current focus is on helping growers adapt to climate change: new rootstocks, vineyard practices, and technical solutions.
One of Laurent’s passions is the development of the Hautes-Côtes, higher-altitude areas once considered too cool but now increasingly promising as temperatures rise. For him, exploring these terroirs mirrors the work of Burgundy’s medieval monks: identifying, isolating and understanding promising climats over decades.
A new generation joins the adventure
Laurent’s daughter Jeanne has now joined the family business after training in Burgundy, Australia, California, and at prestigious estates such as Domaine de la Romanée-Conti. She currently manages their vineyard in Languedoc. For Laurent, having her step into the story restores a sense of continuity that was nearly lost when the family winery was sold decades ago.
The reveal: whose wine was it?
At the end of the tasting, the wines are unveiled:
- Chapter and Verse Mastery Pinot Noir 2019, from Canaan winery (Hebei, China)
- Nuits-Saint-Georges Le Village Vieilles vignes 2022, from Edouard Delaunay (Burgundy, France)
- SG ’67 2019, from Cordero San Giorgio (Oltrepò Pavese, Italy)
Has Laurent identified his own wine? Find out in the video!
