Pommard's Quiet Revolutionary
Fanny Sabre was never supposed to make wine. She was studying law at university in Dijon when her father passed away unexpectedly. At 25, she returned to Pommard to take over the family estate — 4.5 hectares of prime holdings scattered across some of Burgundy's most prestigious appellations. She had no formal training, no experience, and no plan. Enter Philippe Pacalet — natural wine pioneer, nephew of Marcel Lapierre, and one of Burgundy's most revered organic winemakers. He became her mentor, teaching her to farm organically, to trust indigenous yeast, to embrace whole-cluster fermentation, and to let the terroir speak. Over the next two decades, Fanny transformed the domaine into a reference point for clean, vibrant, terroir-transparent Burgundy. She expanded to 7 hectares, gained organic certification in 2018, built a new cellar in Pommard, opened a café, and became a mother of three — Camille, Pierre, and Anatole, each immortalised on her labels. Her wines are ethereal, energetic, and profoundly drinkable: reds of grace and structure, whites of citrus and minerality, all made with minimal sulfur, no fining, no filtration, and an almost stubborn commitment to elegance over power.
The Law Student Who Inherited the Vines
Fanny Sabre grew up in Pommard, surrounded by vineyards, but she never intended to join the family trade. She left for university in Dijon to study law, pursuing a career far removed from the cellar. But in the early 2000s, her father passed away unexpectedly. Fanny was just 25 years old. She returned to Pommard to take over the estate — a mosaic of 4.5 hectares across Pommard, Meursault, Volnay, Savigny-lès-Beaune, Aloxe-Corton, and Beaune. She had no formal oenological training, no harvest experience, and no idea how to run a domaine [^20^][^26^].
Her salvation came in the form of Philippe Pacalet — natural wine pioneer, nephew of the legendary Marcel Lapierre, and one of Burgundy's most respected organic winemakers. Pacalet stepped in to mentor Fanny, teaching her the fundamentals of organic farming, natural winemaking, and minimal intervention. Under his guidance, she learned to work with indigenous yeasts, to avoid synthetic chemicals, to use whole-cluster fermentation, and to trust the vineyard above all else. When Pacalet eventually left to focus on his own projects, Fanny was in her mid-20s and alone — but she was ready [^20^][^35^].
Over the next two decades, Fanny methodically transformed every aspect of the domaine. She converted all her vineyards to 100% organic farming, eventually gaining Ecocert certification in 2018. She retooled her cellars, replacing modern equipment with traditional wooden vats, old barrels, and manual tools. She began ploughing between rows with a manual plow rather than a tractor, seeking greater biodiversity in her vineyards. She experimented, tasted, learned from trial and error, and gradually forged a style that was unmistakably her own: wines of energy, precision, and quiet power [^19^][^35^].
"Fanny Sabre is one of Burgundy's most exciting and quietly revolutionary winemakers."
— Wine Source Group
Pommard, Volnay & Beaune
Fanny Sabre's 7 hectares are a patchwork of some of the Côte de Beaune's most celebrated terroirs. Her holdings span Pommard — the appellation famous for powerful, structured Pinot Noir — as well as Volnay, Beaune, Meursault, Monthélie, Savigny-lès-Beaune, Aloxe-Corton, and even Mercurey in the Côte Chalonnaise. Each parcel is farmed organically, with manual ploughing, organic sprays, and no herbicides. The vines are hand-harvested and placed in small crates to preserve freshness and condition [^19^][^24^].
The soils are classic Burgundian complexity. Pommard's marl-based soils — a mix of mudstone and calcium carbonate — give the wines their signature structure and iron-laced power. Volnay's deeper soils, strewn with limestone pebbles, produce Pinot Noir of finesse and floral elegance. Beaune's Clos des Renardes sits at 300 metres elevation behind thick stone walls, with a mix of clay and limestone that lends acidity and complexity. Meursault's limestone soils below the Château de Meursault yield Chardonnay of striking minerality. Each parcel is treated as an individual expression, with Fanny adapting her approach to the specific needs of each site [^19^][^35^].
Fanny's farming is meticulous and hands-on. She does almost all the work herself — in the vineyards and in the cellar. She has sought to allow for greater biodiversity, planting hedges and cover crops, and using organic fertilizers. The result is wines that taste unmistakably of their place: Pommard with power, Volnay with perfume, Beaune with balance, and Meursault with mineral tension. Production is tiny — most cuvées are 800–1,200 bottles — ensuring that every bottle receives her full attention [^19^][^35^].
The domaine's spiritual home — marl-based soils of mudstone and calcium carbonate. Famous for powerful, structured Pinot Noir. Fanny has multiple plots dispersed throughout the appellation, including the Premier Cru Les Charmots. Old vines, whole-cluster fermentation, and minimal extraction produce wines of surprising elegance rather than brute force. The appellation that made her father's name — and now hers.
Two Premier Cru plots in one of Burgundy's most revered villages for finesse. Les Santenots sits close to the Meursault border — white grapes from here would be Meursault Premier Cru; red grapes become Volnay Premier Cru. Les Mitans lies at 250m on a southeast-facing slope with deep, limestone-pebble soils. Wines of structure, vivacity, and length. Fanny's Volnays are ethereal and deeply floral.
A 2.2-hectare enclosed vineyard ("clos") between Pommard and Beaune, hidden behind stone walls so thick you cannot see over them. 70% Pinot Noir, 30% white grapes (Chardonnay and Pinot Blanc). Fanny's first purchased parcel, bought in 2016. The elevation (~300m) adds acidity; the mixed clay-limestone geology adds complexity. Both red and white cuvées are among her most sought-after wines.
Fanny's holdings extend to Meursault (limestone soils below the Château de Meursault), Monthélie (Les Sous-Roches, stony clay-limestone), Savigny-lès-Beaune (clay-limestone, 30-year-old vines), Aloxe-Corton (age-worthy reds), and even Mercurey in the Côte Chalonnaise (Chardonnay with village status). Each parcel is farmed organically and vinified with the same natural rigour.
Whole Cluster, Indigenous Yeast, Minimal Sulfur
Fanny Sabre's cellar work is defined by minimal intervention and deep respect for terroir. She ferments with indigenous yeasts, uses little to no added sulfites, avoids fining and filtration, and ages her wines in neutral oak barrels to retain the delicate phenolics and floral expression of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Her philosophy grew directly from her mentorship with Philippe Pacalet: simplicity, purity, and letting the vineyard do the talking [^33^][^35^].
For her whites, grapes are gently pressed in a pneumatic press, then fermented and aged in old 500-litre barrels or 228-litre Burgundian barrels. The whites rest on lees with no bâtonnage, no fining, and no filtration. Some receive a light filtration before bottling, but only when necessary. The goal is citrus, minerality, and acidity — wines that feel fresh, lively, and deeply textured. Her Aligoté, from 50-year-old vines planted by her father in Pommard's prized red-wine terroir, is a particular standout: powerful, racy, and utterly unique [^19^][^35^].
For her reds, Fanny employs whole-cluster fermentation — grapes and stems together — in open tronconique wooden vats, a classic Burgundian technique rarely seen today. She uses punch-downs and pump-overs twice daily during alcoholic fermentation for approximately two weeks, then presses and ages on lees in a combination of 400-litre barrels and 20-hectolitre tronconique oak vats. Some new oak is used, but sparingly. She also favours a partial semi-carbonic maceration in some wines, allowing for more natural Pinot Noir flavour. The result is Pinot Noir of unusual clarity: fresh, lean, fruity, and singing with energy and vitality [^19^][^35^].
The 2024 Cuvée XXIV — A Vintage of Necessity
In 2024, Burgundy was hit by devastating weather — frost, hail, and disease wiped out yields across the region. Fanny had so few grapes that she made an unprecedented decision: she blended what would normally have been her Bourgogne Rouge (from three formerly-Pommard plots declassified after WWII) with her Pommard, Volnay, and Beaune Clos des Renardes Rouge. It was the first time she had ever blended across appellations. The result, bottled as Bourgogne Rouge Cuvée XXIV with a black label symbolising the bleakness that caused it, was unexpectedly magnificent — structure from Pommard, prettiness from Volnay, sweetness from Clos des Renardes. An elegant, outstanding wine born from disaster. "Hopefully a one-off cuvée," she says. But the wine world is watching.
Energy & Elegance
Fanny Sabre has carved out her place as a reference point in Burgundy for clean, vibrant, and terroir-transparent wines. Her cuvées offer a soulful counterpoint to the increasingly speculative nature of the fine wine market — wines crafted not for collectors' cellars, but for drinking, sharing, and celebrating. In a region where many producers chase power and extraction, Fanny pursues elegance, freshness, and energy. Her wines are light in colour, delicate on the palate, and profound in their simplicity [^33^].
What sets Fanny apart is her hands-on, almost stubborn independence. She does all the work herself — vineyard, cellar, bottling, labelling. She has three children — Camille, Pierre, and Anatole — and each has a cuvée named after them: Cuvée Camille (a Blanc de Noir pet-nat), L'Oranger de Pierre (an orange wine from Aligoté or Chardonnay), and Anatole (a Pinot Noir IGP and a Vin de France white). Her labels are personal, her cellar is in the centre of Pommard, and she runs a café alongside her winemaking. She is not just a vigneron; she is a mother, a businesswoman, and a quiet force in one of the world's most competitive wine regions [^19^][^20^].
Fanny's wines are snapped up by natural wine bars in Paris and New York before they even reach broader distribution. Chambers Street Wines in New York calls her "towards the top of the list" of winemakers aligning with their vision. E & R Wine Shop notes that "the Parisians are downing most of them." The scarcity is real — most cuvées are 800–1,200 bottles — but the quality is unmistakable. As one importer put it: "The Sabre wines are fresh, lean, fruity and sing with great energy and vitality. They are perfect for the table and/or thoughtful sipping" [^20^][^35^].
"The finely crafted tannins bring structure without obliterating the purity of the juice. And this is where we recognize the natural work of Fanny. What mastery, Madame!!"
— Petitcaves
The Sabre Range
All wines are made from organically farmed estate fruit (Ecocert certified since 2018), hand-harvested in small crates, fermented with indigenous yeast, and aged in old oak barrels or traditional wooden vats. Minimal or no added sulfites. No fining, no filtration (or light filtration only when necessary). Whole-cluster fermentation for reds, gentle pneumatic pressing for whites. Production is tiny — 800–1,200 bottles per cuvée — with allocations strictly managed [^19^][^35^].