As you may know one of my passion in wine is to look for the next rising stars. You might found me frequently recommend up and coming producers in my writings, indeed, I tread cautiously about this subject. After all, not everyone can reach such lofty heights. One of my greatest moment at The Fine Wine Experience last year was bringing Bastian Wolber’s wine to Hong Kong, and hosting a masterclass with him and Catharina Sadde (Les Horées) as one of the events during Fine Wine Experience Burghound Symposium 2023. Many of you had the pleasure of tasting Wolber's wines during the masterclass and our Meet the Producer Tasting, and sensed that we were in the presence of a truly promising vigneron.

Bastian Wolber comes from the wine producing region Baden in Germany where his younger brother Christoph has an estate. Bastian worked harvests in the Mosel, Alsace, before working at renowned Jura producer, Domaine Ganevat. After an unfortunate skateboarding accident left him unable to continue he returned to Baden where he made wine with grapes from there and from Burgundy. In 2020 he moved to Burgundy where he began full time work at Domaine Bizot, creating his own wine label, Laisse Tomber, meaning “leave it”, or “forget it”, but also literally “drop it” – a reference perhaps to that skateboarding accident, but also a nod to his relaxed and cheerful demeanour. Following a few years of quietly crafting his creations on a smaller scale, by 2022 Laisse Tomber had grown to 2ha in total, with 1ha of this owned, an enviable new cellar in Volnay and including a wide array of fruit and terroir – some Gamay, some Riesling, Aligoté, but largely Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from the Côte d’Or (though there is also a Spätburgunder from Baden!). Bastien works organically, with whole cluster for the reds, and minimal sulphur just at bottling.

So here's a tip for you: Don't hesitate. Don't dawdle. Get in line and secure these bottles before the demand explodes!