Prieuré-Roch

One reason Prieure Roch keeps turning up in serious cellars is simple: the wines behave differently. They’re not chasing trend or polish. They come from a set of vineyards and a mindset that asks you to pay attention. Prieure Roch was founded in 1988 by Henri-Frédéric Roch, who spent decades guiding Domaine de la Romanée-Conti. That background often gets mentioned, but the identity of Prieure Roch is its own thing, a mix of quiet conviction and meticulous farming.

Everything at Prieure Roch is organic and biodynamic. Yields stay low. Whole-cluster fermentations are the rule. Native yeasts. No fining or filtration. Little to no sulfur. It’s a minimal-intervention philosophy, but applied with precision, not ideology. You see it in the wines’ shape: lighter colour at times, aromatic lift, and tannins that build gradually rather than all at once.

The heart of the estate is Clos des Corvées, a pure Pinot Noir that tends to open slowly, then keeps unfolding long after you expect it to stop. Red fruit, stems, spice, something slightly wild. Collectors often comment on the way the mid-palate settles with air; a trait that makes the wine feel bigger than its colour suggests. With the right storage, ten to fifteen years isn’t optimistic; it’s normal. That ageing curve is one of the reasons the cuvée remains a benchmark for those who track Burgundy’s most expressive vineyards.

Secondary wines bring extra context. Les Clous, usually darker in tone, suits richer food like lamb, slow-braised beef, even duck cooked simply. Hautes Maizières sits lighter on its feet and works well with mushrooms or charred chicken. These aren’t “entry wines” so much as different angles. They help you understand the estate’s style without demanding a special occasion.

A quiet favourite for some, is the domaine’s occasional Passetoutgrain. It’s not the wine that headlines auctions, but it shows a side of the cellar that’s relaxed, even playful. A bottle to open on a mid-week night when you want Burgundy without the ceremony.

At The Reserve Cellar, we cellar Prieure Roch because the wines benefit from time and not everyone has the space or the inclination to cellar for a decade. Our role is to make sure the bottles you receive are in the right part of their journey, not rushed and not past their best. Collectors appreciate that reliability; newer drinkers appreciate the confidence.