Domaine de Villaine is located in Bouzeron, the Côte Chalonnaise subregion of Burgundy. The vineyards of the domaine are situated within Bouzeron, Rully and Mercurey appellations. The vines are cultivated according to the organic and biodynamic principles and are certified organic in 1997.

Pierre de Benoist is the vigneron. His wines are characterized as perfectly concentrated, with a deep core of fruit and bouquet of freshness, great tension and focus.

When Albert de Villaine became responsible for winemaking at Domaine de la Romanée-Conti in 1971, he set up this private domaine, independent of DCR, in his hometown Douzeron.

The top wines of the domaine are Rully Premier Cru Les Margotés, Bourgogne Aligoté de Bouzeron, and Santenay Premier Cru Passetemps. The Rully Premier Cru Les Margotés 2017 scored 92, Bourgogne Aligoté de Bouzeron 2011 scored 92, and the Santenay Premier Cru Passetemps 2015 scored 91+ by the Wine Advocate.

Robert Parker’s tasting notes on the Rully Premier Cru Les Margotés 2017: “From one of the village's finest sites comes the 2017 Rully Premier Cru Les Margotés, a lovely wine that unwinds to reveal notions of pear, orange rind and almond paste. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and incisive, it's elegant and chalky, with a penetrating, mineral finish. This is well worth seeking out, and it will evidently be a bottling to follow particularly attentively in future vintages.”

Pierre de Benoist is the winemaker at Domaine de Villaine.

The estate's location has been covered with vineyards since the Middle Ages. The monks of Cluny planted this valley of unique soils with vines exclusively on hillsides, between 270 and 350 meters above sea level.

The roots of the domaine go back to 1971 when Aubert de Villaine took over the management of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti and along-side founded his own independent domaine - Domaine de Villaine.

In 1997, mainly due to Aubert de Villaine's advocacy for several years, one of the gems of Burgundy - Bourgogne Aligoté de Bouzeron gained its AOC status.

In the 1990s, part of Domaine de la Breliére in Rully and Domaine Saint-Michel were acquired.

In 2000 Pierre de Benoist, nephew of Aubert de Villaine, succeeded the domaine.

Pierre de Benoist pays a lot of attention to rediscovering the Côte Chalonnaise and, in particular, Bouzeron. Besides, he developed a cuttings nursery from the oldest vineyard, Les Fias.

The vineyards of Domaine de Villaine are cultivated according to the organic and biodynamic principles and certified organic in 1997 by Qualité-France.

Neither pesticides nor herbicides or fertilisers are used for the natural balance of soils and vines; only organic vegetal compost is applied. Severe pruning, disbudding and, if needed, thinning of the young vines is conveyed.

Harvesting is carried out by hand, as it helps to get whole grapes in excellent condition. Pinots are collected in the morning, Chardonnay in the afternoon and the Aligoté in the following 7 to 10 days. Sorting is rigorous.

In the vinification process, Pierre de Benoist favours the non-interventionist approach and follows the moon cycles.

Maturation takes place in tuns, oak casks, tanks, or a combination of the three. The usage of new oak is moderate in order to show the true nature of the wine.