2022 Burgundy En Primeur Red Wines
Red Wines by Producer
(Click producer to see list red wines.)
Thibault Liger-Belair Successeurs
The lack of the word 'domaine' in the name signals that this is a négociant wine from Thibault Liger-Belair. Thibault buys the grapes he picks having tended the vines with his own team, so that the wines are domaine wines in all but name.
In Bond
Domaine Ninot
Domaine Ninot has 13 hectares split 50/50 between Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, with Rully and Rully 1er Cru in white and red, and 2 hectares of red Mercurey. They have been working organically since 2017, and the first vintage to be certified organic was 2020.
The domaine is run by Erell, who is in charge of the cellar and the commercial side, and her brother Flavien in the vineyard. The family has had roots in the region since the 14th century, and Erell and Flavien's grandfather was one of the leaders of the appellation of Rully when it was established in 1939. However he died when their father Pierre-Marie was only 14, and the domaine, split between five children, had to be sold. Pierre-Marie kept his part of the inheritance, 5 hectares of vines, and began again, gradually adding to the holdings by fermages and purchases. Once Erell had completed her studies in oenology and commerce, and had gained experience by working abroad, he handed over the keys to the cellar.
Erell is delighted to have 2022 in the cellar - a normal size vintage, the first since 2016. There were no real problems at all throughout the season. Really quite a typical modern year. Vintage was warm - with some 'secheresse', but there were also storms and plenty of water so the vines did not suffer. She loves the balance and approachability of the wines - which are almost all hard to resist right away!
P & M Jacqueson
The domaine was founded in 1946 by Henri Jacqueson and passed to his son Paul. Marie joined her father in 2006 and since 2015 she and her brother Pierre run the estate, now known simply as P&M Jacqueson. The domaine consists of 18 hectares of vines, mostly in Rully, but also 5 in Mercurey and some in Bouzeron. The team also tend vines owned by their neighbours and make some beautiful wines from other peoples' fruit that they themselves have worked all year.
Traditional methods meticulously applied inspire everything they do: the grapes are harvested by hand and vinified in classical fashion, before an élevage in barrel (up to 25% new wood for the reds, just 20% for the 1er Cru Whites). The domaine has become adept at a sophisticated use of barrels, the élevage here is key to the quality they consistently achieve.
Domaine François Raquillet
François took over the running of this estate from his father, Jean, in 1990, with his wife Emmanuelle. Records show that the same family have made wine in Mercurey since the 1600s, and Francois is the eleventh generation. His daughter Jeanne is also now heavily involved, her passion is really viticulture - so she works mostly in the vineyards for now but will be the 12th generation at the helm of this stellar property.
With eleven hectares under vine, François has substantially reduced yields, introduced higher quality oak barrels (up to 50% new wood for the Premiers Crus) and significantly increased the quality of wines made at this domaine. François explains he tries to avoid over-extraction at all costs - his one aim is to deliver the beautifully pure fruit profile he gets out of the old vines - this he does with great success. It is a wonderfully transparent style - combined with good mid-palate weight.
Thankfully there were smiles all around this year and the sad story of the terrible run of vintages here (in terms of yield) has finally paused. After 2020's slim yield of 35hl/ha, followed by the pitiful 23hl/ha in 2021. 2022 is back to a more normal level in the 40s and 2023 also was a good productive season for this domaine - finally! These wines are great value across the range.
Domaine François Lumpp
François Lumpp started as a grower in the family domaine in 1977, but then separated from his brother and set up on his own with four hectares of vines in 1991. He and his wife Isabelle have gradually grown the vineyard to reach nine and a half hectares. They are delighted that they have now been joined by their daughter Anne-Cécile who is running the estate day to day now, assisted by her brother Pierre.
François remains a passionate viticulturalist and the family places great emphasis on making the wine in the vineyards, which are farmed with minimum intervention to allow the terroir to express itself fully. In practice this means very careful choice of plant material to give the highest quality results - often at the expense of yield. The mantra is certainly quality above quantity at this estate which has helped lock it in as an address to note for all lovers of fine Burgundy. It is no surprise that wine critic Tim Atkin MW described François Lumpp as the 'the best producer in Givry.' All the Lumpp wines offer great value for money - year after year.
Domaine Remy & Fils
A family domaine that extends back five generations to 1853, but which Joël has modernised considerably over the past twenty years, installing new fermentation and ageing equipment. Over the years his vinifications have changed, and the wines have a lot more immediacy and precision. The quality of fruit is not in doubt, as lovers of his Bourgogne Rouge from year to year will attest, and a lot of work in the vineyard contributes to this, including leaf-thinning towards the end of the growing season. In the winery he has installed a vibrating sorting table, and the only filtering is by a lens filter at very low pressure to avoid de-naturing the wines. All offer quite striking value.
In 2016 Joël was joined full-time by both his children, Maxime and Manon. There is a renewed air of excitement and ambition here. They are moving to slightly longer élevages over eighteen months, with four to five months in cuve at the end.
Joel hunts finesse and has been working on tannin structure for years. Picking at right time, using his vertical press - 'artisanal perhaps' says Joel but you can control it so closely - very gentle extraction is possible. Less Pigeage too. It's clear these efforts are all paying off!
Domaine de la Choupette
The Gutrin brothers' domaine was created when the twins joined forces in 1992 - it's based in the middle of Santenay, with Jean-Christophe in charge of the vines and Philippe in the winery. Perrine Gutrin runs the 'front of house'. They have vineyards in Puligny (three hectares), Chassagne (half a hectare) Maranges (one hectare) and Santenay (seven and a half hectares) - eight hectares of red and four of white in all. The vineyards are worked traditionally with ploughing rather than chemicals for weed control and to encourage the roots to go deeper. Yields are initially controlled at the pruning and with de-budding, and finally a green harvest as necessary. The domaine is certified HVE 3 ('High Environmental Value') from the 2022 harvest.
Whites are classically made with élevage in barrel for a year with up to half new wood. They are playing with the specification of the barrels, looking for a 'discreet toast'.
The reds are de-stemmed and macerated cold for a week before the three week fermentation at around 28C, then the temperature is allowed to rise to around 33C to stabilise colour and tannins. This gentle vinification is aimed at making fruit-forward wines, which are then aged in barrel for twelve to eighteen months using a mix of new and up to three-year-old barrels.
Domaine Thomas-Collardot
Jacqueline Collardot and her son Matthieu own and run this exciting 'micro-domaine' in the heart of Puligny-Montrachet. Matthieu completed his studies in 2019 and joined Jacqueline permanently, just in time for the harvest. Now they are working together we look forward to a slightly bigger production - as while she worked alone she was limited to what she could achieve on her own, with excess grapes being sold on.
At only 2.5ha, this is an artisan project, allowing them to give unrivalled time and care to every parcel she has. Jacqueline inherited these vineyards from her father’s Domaine Thomas Pierre in 2010 after he retired and is slowly raising the profile with her incredible care and attention. Although there may not be much quantity - the quality is impeccable. These are classically shaped, bright wines that express their various Puligny terroirs perfectly.
From 2020 the domaine is now organically certified. They still use their horse to plough the vineyards - but going forward, they are planning on doing this only every two years as they worry the process is a little rough on the soil to be done every season. Huge thought has recently gone into the élevage too. The time in barrel has been reduced to just 12 months rather than the 18-24 they were doing previously - this coincides with a study they were doing of 5 different coopers to try and ascertain which plots work best with which barrels. They have begun to introduce larger barrels of 350l - and to have more new wood in the cellar.
Domaine Joseph Colin
Joseph Colin is one of the four children of Marc Colin (the others being Pierre-Yves, Damien and Caroline), who had a large domaine with vines in Saint Aubin, Santenay, Chassagne and Puligny. Pierre-Yves left the family domaine in 2005 and after that Joseph was an important member of the team there. After making a token 1800 or so bottles on his own account in 2016, he started in earnest with 2017, with seven hectares of vines, from which he makes an astonishing nineteen different cuvées.
Most of the vines he has in Saint Aubin are young, but by limiting bunches to six or seven per vine, he manages to control the yields. With plenty of time to learn his craft at Domaine Marc Colin, he has developed into a confident winemaker. He experimented with sulphur levels in the wines at the family domaine, so coming to his current view that the wines should be left the longest time possible without added S02, perhaps adding some at racking, but if he feels there's still enough C02 after racking, he will not even add any at that stage, so as to develop 'wine at its purest', but he is keen to say also that he has no standard recipe - he will adapt to each wine. In 2020 he again used no S02 until just before bottling, but he's clear that if there's some botrytis, for example, he will add it earlier. Generally nothing is either fined or filtered. He is very aware of biodynamics, but says that the tides are more important than just the phase of the moon, and that he places less importance on whether it's a fruit or flower day - for him the important thing is not to manipulate a wine when it's tasting good - you must do it when it's not showing well.
Joseph is a very bright new prospect for lovers of precise, pure white Burgundies with fresh acidity and crystalline definition.
Domaine Fernand & Laurent Pillot
The origins of the Pillot family in Chassagne can be traced back to the eighteenth century, when they seem to have been coopers more than vignerons. In the nineteenth century they abandoned barrel-making in favour of enlarging the property in Chassagne. Fernand and Laurent, who is the fourth generation, added to it again in 1992, and then in 2001 Laurent's wife Marie-Anne inherited half of her family's property, the Pommard domaine of Pothier-Rieusset, and Laurent and his father bought the other half. The domaine now stands at 14.5 hectares of vines across almost the whole length of the Côte de Beaune from Santenay to Beaune.
The Domaine is worked according to organic principles and is ploughed – no chemical weedkillers are used. They have also been members of the Dephy-ECO-phyto group, which works to reduce the number of treatments using copper sulphate, since 2012. In 2021 they began the process of organic certification.
Laurent has always managed to pack in a lot alongside his running of the vineyard. He has his own plane which he flies to all corners of France, used keep and hunts hawks, and conducts the Chassagne brass band as well as dabbling in Mayoral duties - on top of being a father of three, Anaïs, Adrien and Eugène. They are all mad about the alps and disappear up the mountains at regular intervals.
Laurent's eldest son Adrien has been travelling the world making wine all over the place for the last few years having completed his training in Beaune. Bringing back lessons learnt in Australia, South Africa and California (and from a stint at Lea & Sandeman). During harvest Adrien is now the one in the winery while Laurent takes charge of the picking team. The wines have long been L&S favourites in both red and white - they represent excellent value, and they age very well too, despite being attractive young. The whites are precise and pure, and not lacking for body and generosity, while the reds are velvety and juicy, beautifully balanced even if drunk young on their expressive Pinot fruit. The domaine was rightfully heralded in Decanter Magazine as 'an address that deserves to be better-known'. Great value and real pleasure across their range.
We discussed Adrien's wish to do a longer élevage for the whites, but the problem that if you take the wines out of barrel that means keeping them in vats with floating tops, and they are not mad about the practicality of that. For now most are bottled after a year, but the Vide Bourse and Grandes Ruchottes will stay in barrel until the spring. They use little SO2 to begin with, gradually stabilising the levels once the wines are back in tank, and still finishing with low levels. They like ripe grapes: 'there's a kind of fashion to be the first to pick in Burgundy - they want to keep the freshness but all they get is acidity and tannin'. For the reds, they don't do massive extraction - 3 pigeages only in the middle of the fermentation, but they do a lot of pump-overs.
Adrien is now in the winery and Laurent orchestrates the picking. Adrien has already made some changes to the vinification and the quality here taking another step up.
Domaine Henri Germain
Jean-François Germain was joined in 2018 by his daughter Lucie - who is now helping to run this small (7ha) domaine.
The Chassagne vineyards came through his mother, a Pillot, and Jean-François is married to François Jobard's daughter (sister of Antoine), so they are quite intertwined with some of our other producers. The Poruzots comes from the rows next to Remi Jobard's. In terms of winemaking the Germains are always happy to let nature take its course, and in the vineyards they follow as natural a system of viticulture as possible (organic, not certified).
These are concentrated, tightly wound wines from one of Burgundy's coldest cellars. Alcoholic fermentations can take months and the malolactics are often late, so they have always gone for long élevage in old barrels, always for two winters, and the Premiers Crus usually for 22 months. Slow to develop, they show wonderful crystalline purity. New wood is used very sparingly, just to replace barrels sold when they get to ten years old.
Domaine Rémi Jobard
Rémi has been making small qualitative changes ever since he took over here. The entire vineyard is cordon-pruned, so yields are naturally limited. There has been no use of fertiliser since 1994, and the vineyard is grassed-over to encourage the vine roots to go deep. The domaine has been certified organic from 2008. He says that the two most important things are the absence of weedkiller (and thus the necessity to plough, which cuts any surface roots and makes the vine go deeper) and not adding any fertiliser which again makes the roots go deeper to find nutrients.Rémi has two vast presses, to enable him to press very slowly over six hours, and this has resulted in a big jump in finesse. The élevage now lasts nearly fifteen months, so as to allow the wines to develop slowly and to avoid fining. As a result these are wines which take a moment to show, but which reward the patient with complexity and great depth of flavour.
Rémi made a move from traditional barrels to foudres made of a mix of French, Austrian and Slavonian oak, constructed by Austrian cooper Stockinger, and having added a new one (or two) each year, there's barely a normal barrel left. He likes the way the wines develop in these large volumes, in which the 'oaking' effect is minimised.
We are again very excited about Rémi's two red wines this year, both of which are excellent.
Domaine Nicolas Rossignol
Nico is well settled into his bespoke build 'cellar' (it's all above ground). Admittedly it's in a ZI (Zone Industrielle) on the outskirts of Beaune, which is not ideal for the 'folklore' aspect, but it is a perfect tool for the job, and does have a good view of all 'his' bits of the Côte - from a sort of eyrie on the roof. He is convinced that his wines have gained in finesse since the move.
Nico is working with Bruno Lorenzon, who is a cooper as well as a vigneron, and using the lightest imaginable toasts - so much so that the barrel staves are very fragile, having not been steamed enough to bend the wood without extreme tension. Nico says that while the fashion is to use less and less new wood, he is using more, but while toasted barrels used to bring a welcome sucrosity to the wines in the past, it's not needed nowadays, as the wines have quite enough, so the wood is performing a different role, bringing finesse and lengthening the wines. It's a similar conversation we've had with Thibault Liger-Belair and his carefully chosen trees and 'white toasts'.
Nico is keen to let us know in advance that he regards this very much as primeur pricing, and says that once on the 'deliverable' price list will be 30-40% more expensive, so there is a real incentive to get stuck in early.
Domaine Comte Armand
A domaine totalling nine hectares, of which the most important part is a magnificent five hectare monopole of the Pommard Premier Cru Clos des Epeneaux, which was put together by Nicolas Marey in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries (along with the DRC Romanée Saint Vivant 'Marey-Monge'). These vineyards were all sold, except for the Clos (it now been enclosed by a wall), which came to Jean-François Armand as a dowry when he married Nicolas' daughter in 1826. The Volnay vineyards were added in 1994, followed by parcels in Auxey Duresses.
The current Comte Armand is a lawyer living in Paris, but very supportive of the régisseurs who have looked after this domaine for the thirty years or so that L&S have been buying here. The 1980 vintage, made by one of the many Rossignols of Volnay who was in charge at the time, was for us a great introduction to the possibilities of the great Clos des Epeneaux vineyard. Then came the era of Pascal Marchand, a young Quebecois who came to do a harvest with Domaine Bruno Clair and just never left. He began a period of radical restructuring and the introduction of organic and then biodynamic farming, while making very dark, dense and long-lived wines. Benjamin Leroux, hugely respected amongst growers who approach things from an organic or biodynamic point of view, then took over, and refined this approach and changed the way the parcels of vines are divided up for harvesting, paying less attention to just the age of the vines, and more to the underlying soil types. Claude Bourguignon was employed to provide a full geological survey of the Clos as the basis for this. Under Benjamin the wines of the Clos gained in finesse and precision, while still having the depth and richness expected of a great Pommard.
Both Pascal and Benjamin were keen to expand beyond the confines of the Clos, and the Domaine also has vines in Volnay, and, a particular enthusiasm of both Pascal and Benjamin, in Auxey Duresses, where they are convinced of the great potential of some of this village's undervalued and neglected terroirs. Paul Zinetti, who had worked with Ben for four years, took over in 2014.
The vineyard is cultivated organically (ECOCERT certified) and biodynamically. The grapes are entirely de-stemmed, but left intact, for a five to eight-day cold maceration before the fermentation, which lasts five to ten days, and then the wine remains in the fermenters for between three and fifteen days, depending on the vintage. In most years, the total time with skin contact will be around four weeks, which is longer than most. The wines will then be aged in barrel for between eighteen and twenty-four months, with new wood limited to 30% for the wine from the old vines of the Clos, down to none at all for the village wines.
Paul said from the outset that he wanted to make a less tannic wine in the Clos, and one which is more about aromatic length. In this he is continuing the route that Ben was following, but perhaps taking it even further.
Domaine de Courcel
One of the great domaines of Pommard, with a 400 year history in the same family. The domaine produces a small amount of Bourgogne Chardonnay, a completely over-performing Bourgogne Rouge, a village Pommard (Vaumuriens, 1.44 ha), but the biggest part of the domaine consists of four great Premier Cru expressions of the terroir of Pommard, Fremiers (0.79 ha), Croix Noires (0.58 ha), Grand Clos des Epenots (4.89 ha) and Rugiens (1.07 ha). These represent a very different style to the Clos des Épeneaux of Comte Armand, for example. Yves Confuron, the régisseur, describes the difference between the two top wines by saying that the Grand Clos is 'terreux' while the Rugiens is 'aérien'.
The aim is to limit yields to around 25hl/ha, to attain optimum ripeness. The vines are ploughed, and pruned carefully to suit each one, then de-budded in spring and green-harvested in August to keep the fruit load balanced. Following Yves' usual practice the harvest is late and the vatting is long - usually around a month, with a cold maceration leading into a cool fermentation, and a long post-fermentation soak under the protection of the carbon dioxide given off by the fermentation. The wines are developed in barrel over 21 to 23 months, with a third of the barrels being replaced each year. After racking they are bottled without fining or filtration.
The domaine produces wines with astonishing depth and density that still retain the freshness, just like Yves' own wines at Domaine Confuron-Cotetidot. They are classic vins de garde and patience is advised - and will be amply rewarded.
Domaine Henri Boillot
Henri Boillot was in reflective mood when we visited in November - clearly moved by the wonderful 2022s that we tasted together but also mindful of the cellar brim-full with 2023s. He was at ease, and despite his busy schedule - 'I will receive friends from every corner of the world this month' had time to talk about everything from his Syrah themed Birthday party - (a washout incidentally, and Pinot soon took over!) his views on the shortcomings of some Clos wines compared to some Monopole sites. As ever his approach, steeped in history yet with a very open mind to finessing his craft, has made some stellar wines in 2022. The whites are layered, textured juicy and characterful - and Guillaume’s reds continue to improve every time we visit, they are a real triumph this year, tasting better than ever.
A domaine which dates back to 1885, but which began properly in the early years of the 20th century under the current Henri's grandfather (also Henri). His son, Jean, was the one who really developed it. Henri arrived in 1975 and worked his way up, becoming the winemaker. In 2000 he began the building of the new winery at the bottom of Meursault, and he then bought out his brother and sister to keep the domaine as one, renaming it from 'Domaine Jean Boillot' to 'Domaine Henri Boillot' to avoid confusion with his brother Jean-Marc's domaine.
After six years working alongside his father, Guillaume is the 'chef de culture', i.e. heads up the vineyard team, and has been entirely responsible for the vinification of the reds since 2012. Henri continues to make the whites which he likes to be 'straight, taut, precise, pure and elegant'. Guillaume's input has resulted in red wines that have gained in definition and energy, without losing the luxurious velvety richness and fruit depth that they have always had. From 2018 he expanded his use of vinification intégrale in which the reds are vinified in the barrels they will be aged in - the cellar being equipped with 140 barrels with stainless steel doors in the ends, all made of wood they bought for the purpose, which has been dried for three years. Labour-intensive and time-consuming though it is, Guillaume clearly believes it is the way to more precision in the wines, and the difference is noticeable.
The Domaine has roughly equal surfaces of red and white, and of which just under 4ha is the Monopole vineyard of Clos de la Mouchère, a walled enclave within the premier Cru Puligny Perrières. After the 2018 acquisition of small parcels in Latricières and Échezeaux, the Boillots bought the vineyards of Domaine Henri Darnat early in 2019, bringing in a new monopole Clos in Meursault, the Clos Richemont, part of 1er Cru les Cras.
Henri Boillot
Henri Boillot complements his domaine wines with a small range of négociant wines of superb quality in very limited quantities. A few of the wines are offered here - an opportunity to buy some of Burgundy's rarest appellations from a top source.
Domaine Chicotot
A 7 hectare domaine in Nuits Saint Georges currently run by Pascale and Clément Chicotot, who describe themselves as 'vignerons...simplement'. They say that only natural methods have been used for several generations and the domaine is certified organic.
Vinification is traditional, the fermentation beginning after 5 to 6 days of cold maceration and lasting around 15 days, with remontage or pigeage as necessary and aged in barrel with a maximum of 25% new wood. SO2 levels are very low. The wines are well-coloured and well-defined and expressive - lots of personality here, with the village wines (which are all on the Vosne side of Nuits) near 1er Cru quality.
Clement has now taken over the winemaking from his mother Pascale, and was keen to emphasise small differences. He describes the cuves, in which he layers whole bunches with destemmed fruit as being 'like a cake, you have to let it rise, so I don't like pigeage', he relies on remontages - drawing liquid from the bottom to sprinkle on the cap to keep it wet which he does without a pump. Then when it begins to cool he will do his one pigeage. He used 1/3 to 1/2 whole bunches in 2021, while on 2022 it was almost 100%. We discussed barrels - they've moved to demi-muids since 2019, wood from the Tronçais made by a local artisanal cooper. They keep them 7 or 8 years as they progress down the ladder from Premier Cru to the Bourgogne. After the fermentation the wines are put into barrel in the cellar and left there for a year - no racking during the élevage.
The picture shows Clément and Pascale with the graphic design they've used as the label for the old-vine cuvée 'Papillon de Nuys'.
Domaine J. Confuron Cotetidot
Vignerons since the seventeenth century, the Confuron family has always selected and propagated vines to ensure that their plant material produces the highest quality, and they even have a clone of Pinot named after them - 'Pinot Confuron'.
The domaine has several Grands Cru vineyards as well as two hectares of the great Vosne Romanée Premier Cru 'Les Suchots'. There are around 12 hectares in all. The vines have never seen chemical weedkillers, and are ploughed and managed organically.
The Confurons have always used whole-bunch fermentation, picking very late, which really is a necessity if the stems are to be properly ripe and not give green flavours to the wine. A bit like the Thévenets with their whites in the Maconnais, they pick so much later that they can seem to have different vintages to everyone else. Yves thinks that 2007 was their great vintage of the first decade of this millennium, and he'd probably be the only grower in the Cote de Nuits who would say that. Yves also makes the wines at Domaine de Courcel in Pommard, in the same way.
Domaine Faiveley
The Faiveley family are the largest vineyard owners in Burgundy, owning around 120ha, spread across the Côtes de Nuits, Beaune and Chalonnaise and encompassing everything from generic Bourgogne up to the grandest of Grand Crus. Their own holdings supply the grapes for 5 out of every 6 bottles made by Faiveley, the balance being bought in from carefully selected contract growers.
Faiveley has been more and more impressive in recent years, and the combination of winemaker Jérôme Flous and an entirely new winery are taking them onwards and upwards year after year.
Domaine Joseph Drouhin
Joseph Drouhin, founded in 1880 and still family owned, are one of the most well-respected names in Burgundy, especially through their flagship wine, the iconic Clos des Mouches.
A huge part of the Drouhin production comes from their own domaine fruit (78 hectares), and much of the rest comes from contracts such as that with the Marquis de Laguiche, who shook hands with the grandfather of the current generation, agreeing to let him manage his vineyards which included an important part of Le Montrachet; this collaboration endures. Today, the fourth generation is at the helm
Small refinements continue to be made here. The presses have been changed - a reversion to basket pressing for the reds, and for whites the presses are open - along with a number of other growers they are following the trend to think that slight oxidation of the juice before fermentation is not a problem and may add complexity as well as avoiding later problems of premature oxidation in bottle.
For the reds there has been the introduction of selective whole-bunch fermentation in the Côte de Nuits wines. The house style remains one that 'emphasises the natural elegance of great Burgundies' as they describe it. The domaine is all cultivated with an organic and biodynamic approach.
Thibault Liger-Belair Successeurs
The lack of the word 'domaine' in the name signals that this is a négociant wine from Thibault Liger-Belair. Thibault buys the grapes he picks having tended the vines with his own team, so that the wines are domaine wines in all but name.
Domaine Henri Boillot
Henri Boillot was in reflective mood when we visited in November - clearly moved by the wonderful 2022s that we tasted together but also mindful of the cellar brim-full with 2023s. He was at ease, and despite his busy schedule - 'I will receive friends from every corner of the world this month' had time to talk about everything from his Syrah themed Birthday party - (a washout incidentally, and Pinot soon took over!) his views on the shortcomings of some Clos wines compared to some Monopole sites. As ever his approach, steeped in history yet with a very open mind to finessing his craft, has made some stellar wines in 2022. The whites are layered, textured juicy and characterful - and Guillaume’s reds continue to improve every time we visit, they are a real triumph this year, tasting better than ever.
A domaine which dates back to 1885, but which began properly in the early years of the 20th century under the current Henri's grandfather (also Henri). His son, Jean, was the one who really developed it. Henri arrived in 1975 and worked his way up, becoming the winemaker. In 2000 he began the building of the new winery at the bottom of Meursault, and he then bought out his brother and sister to keep the domaine as one, renaming it from 'Domaine Jean Boillot' to 'Domaine Henri Boillot' to avoid confusion with his brother Jean-Marc's domaine.
After six years working alongside his father, Guillaume is the 'chef de culture', i.e. heads up the vineyard team, and has been entirely responsible for the vinification of the reds since 2012. Henri continues to make the whites which he likes to be 'straight, taut, precise, pure and elegant'. Guillaume's input has resulted in red wines that have gained in definition and energy, without losing the luxurious velvety richness and fruit depth that they have always had. From 2018 he expanded his use of vinification intégrale in which the reds are vinified in the barrels they will be aged in - the cellar being equipped with 140 barrels with stainless steel doors in the ends, all made of wood they bought for the purpose, which has been dried for three years. Labour-intensive and time-consuming though it is, Guillaume clearly believes it is the way to more precision in the wines, and the difference is noticeable.
The Domaine has roughly equal surfaces of red and white, and of which just under 4ha is the Monopole vineyard of Clos de la Mouchère, a walled enclave within the premier Cru Puligny Perrières. After the 2018 acquisition of small parcels in Latricières and Échezeaux, the Boillots bought the vineyards of Domaine Henri Darnat early in 2019, bringing in a new monopole Clos in Meursault, the Clos Richemont, part of 1er Cru les Cras.
Domaine de la Douaix
Mark and Gilles Moustie are Belgians, huge fans of wine and in particular Burgundy. The family rented a gite for many years in the Hautes Côtes village of Arcenant, straight up the hill to the west of Nuits Saint Georges, and gently graduated from buying wines at domaines up and down the Côte to wanting to make the wine themselves. Eventually they bought some vines and a house with cellars, and set to.
Most of their wines are from vines they own, but they do make a little wine from bought-in fruit to supplement what is still a tiny domaine. It is Gilles who is hands-on on a daily basis and is really running the domaine now with ever-growing confidence. He is now working organically across the domaine and they continue to buy parcels of old vines when they get a chance.
There is a real sense of continual growth in the quality of the winemaking here - this is particularly evident in such a tricky vintage as 2021. Gilles has clearly honed his skills over the last few years and the wines get ever more sophisticated in feel and depth. He now adds 10-15% of whole bunches to the fermenters. This he does in layers. Grapes - then bunches. Grapes then bunches. (Getting more technical still, Gilles uses only bunches with millerandage for this, as the stems are more mature as they are not working so hard for the grapes.) He has also extended the élevage, and is now keeping all his wines in wood for two winters: 'I really like how the wines stabilise in the last six months.'
Finally now fully established in his renovated cellars - there is a real sense that Gilles is fully settled, focused and happy in his task of championing this exciting corner of Burgundy.
Domaine Huguenot
The Huguenots can trace their history in Marsannay and working in the vines back to 1789. Currently the domaine is run by Philippe. His father Jean-Louis expanded the domaine from five to twenty-two hectares (twelve in Marsannay, six in Fixin, and four in Gevrey) before handing over the reins. Philippe took the bold step of taking the whole domaine into organic production (the conversion was completed in 2010), but immensely sadly he was forced to do a single non-organic treatment in 2016, because of the terrible conditions, so he was back to square one - three years to re-qualify for the organic label. Nevertheless Philippe, although initially unsure if he would try for the certification again was not planning to change the way he works - it is, he assures us, better for him and the environment and and his workers as well as for quality. So he fought his way back, and the wines have been certified organic again since 2019. Philippe now has 23 hectares in production.
Philippe is using around 20-25% new wood on his Premiers Crus and 50% on the Grand Cru.
Domaine Derey Frères
Domaine Derey Frères has its cellar in the village of Couchey, between Marsannay and Fixin. The family's vigneron background can be traced back to 1650, but it was called Derey Frères only from the 1950s, with the establishment of the domaine as it is now when brothers Albert and Maurice worked together. Fifth generation Pierre Derey, while keeping an eye on things, has ceded to the this sixth generation, his sons Maxime, Romain and Pierre-Marie, who seem to work well as a team in vineyard and cellar - so the domaine's name has never been more appropriate.
The brothers have 20 hectares of vines, spread from the edge of Dijon to Gevrey Chambertin. There are Bourgogne Rouges from the historic vineyards of the Dukes of Burgundy which are relics of the historic Dijon vineyards, now mostly part of the town. The core of the domaine could be said to be the ten hectares in Marsannay, while the vineyards in Fixin and Gevrey Chambertin complete the range.
In the vineyard the brothers have turned the whole domaine into organic conversion - the first certified wines will be from the 2023 harvest. Winemaker Maxime has experimented with some whole bunches, ranging from 20% top 100%, quite quick alcoholic fermentations, with or without the addition of sulphites, and usually with indigenous yeasts, but with no fixed recipe - it all depends on the year. The wines are then aged for between 12 and 18 months with an average of 25% new barrels (up to 40% in the top wines).
The result is wines which they say are in the image of the three brothers - 'instinctive, frank and spontaneous', with immediate pleasure from a juicy fruit which dominates, but which will not prevent the wines from aging well.
Domaine Thierry Mortet
The domaine dates back to 1992, when Domaine Charles Mortet was split between Thierry and his brother Denis, and Thierry set up on his own with just 4 hectares of vines. Today he has 7.3 ha, of which 6 are red and 1.3 white. Only 4.36 hectares are Gevrey or Chambolle, the rest being a small parcel of Marsannay Blanc and regionals - Bourgogne Rouge and Blanc, Aligoté and Passetoutgrain.
Thierry continues to be praised in the French press without ever quite seeming to crack the influential American journalists. It may be simply because he is a bit short of fancy appellations - one little cuvée of Grand Cru would no doubt do his reputation a lot of good - but might also put his prices up, and these remain very modest.In the vineyard, Thierry has been certified organic since 2007, but really this was just an official stamp on what had been the practices of the domaine since the beginning, and he is working towards biodynamic certification. In the cellar, the grapes are entirely de-stemmed, and given four or five days of cold maceration are followed by the fermentation, with just a touch of cooling to keep the temperature around 31-33C (below 35, at least), and two pigeages a day. The total time in vat can be as little as 17 days. The wines then go into barrel, all second use or older for the Bourgogne, with 30% new wood on the Gevrey, and 50% on the Clos Prieur, for a period of around sixteen months.
Thierry's wines are fine and precise, tangy and long, never massive, but not insubstantial all the same. The surprise this year was to find Thierry joined by his daughter Lise who has done her vinicultural training and is now working at the domaine.
Domaine Stéphane Magnien
Stéphane's is a small domaine, a mere 4.5 hectares, with one full hectare of that in regional wine - Passetoutgrains and Bourgogne - but it is blessed with two Grands Crus and also a long history of not messing with nature. No pesticides have ever been used on this land, and the plants are nearly all the old 'Pinot tordu' - twisted Pinot with its gnarly stems which are less vigorous than the modern clones and said by many to make wines with more finesse.
Stéphane chaptalizes only to extend fermentations - these are wines which his father Jean-Paul used to describe as 'sage en alcool' - from 12 to 13% - the old vines do not make much alcohol. Wood use is also discreet, even though Stéphane has increased the proportion, he does not exceed 50% new wood on the Grands Crus, 25% on the Premiers Crus and on the village appellations, 15% new wood for one year only, then all into older barrels.
Stéphane says that he aims to make wines with more richness than his father's, 'but not black angular wines which have less relief. Wines which leave your mouth clean and clear, refreshed and revived and, above all, wanting another glass'. He destems 100%, gives the grapes a six-day maceration, then a classical fermentation with just two pigeages, and a little remontage (pumping over) at the end.
Domaine Christian Clerget
A domaine of 6 hectares, with 8 appellations, run by Christian, Isabelle and their daughter Justine Clerget from their house in the northern end of the little village of Vougeot, which is really in the commune of Chambolle. They have been organic (certified) since 2017, Justine having insisted on it when she joined them, but it sounds as though she was pushing at an open door, because Christian is entirely committed to this approach and clearly believes that good wine starts with the vines.
At harvest the grapes are picked into small cases for the short trip to the winery which really is right in the middle of their holdings. They adapt to the vintage conditions, so that they did 2 pigeages in total in 2019, whereas in 2017, they did one a day throughout the fermentation. In 2018 they did some whole bunch fermentation, but reverted to their normal complete destemming in 2019. At the end of the alcoholic fermentation Christian decants into tank, allows the wine to settle for ten days, then puts the wines into barrel where they stay without racking until bottling. They are using about 30% new wood on the villages and 40% on the Chambolle Charmes and the Échézeaux, and the wines stay in barrel for a long élevage of 18-20 months.
Domaine Chicotot
A 7 hectare domaine in Nuits Saint Georges currently run by Pascale and Clément Chicotot, who describe themselves as 'vignerons...simplement'. They say that only natural methods have been used for several generations and the domaine is certified organic.
Vinification is traditional, the fermentation beginning after 5 to 6 days of cold maceration and lasting around 15 days, with remontage or pigeage as necessary and aged in barrel with a maximum of 25% new wood. SO2 levels are very low. The wines are well-coloured and well-defined and expressive - lots of personality here, with the village wines (which are all on the Vosne side of Nuits) near 1er Cru quality.
Clement has now taken over the winemaking from his mother Pascale, and was keen to emphasise small differences. He describes the cuves, in which he layers whole bunches with destemmed fruit as being 'like a cake, you have to let it rise, so I don't like pigeage', he relies on remontages - drawing liquid from the bottom to sprinkle on the cap to keep it wet which he does without a pump. Then when it begins to cool he will do his one pigeage. He used 1/3 to 1/2 whole bunches in 2021, while on 2022 it was almost 100%. We discussed barrels - they've moved to demi-muids since 2019, wood from the Tronçais made by a local artisanal cooper. They keep them 7 or 8 years as they progress down the ladder from Premier Cru to the Bourgogne. After the fermentation the wines are put into barrel in the cellar and left there for a year - no racking during the élevage.
The picture shows Clément and Pascale with the graphic design they've used as the label for the old-vine cuvée 'Papillon de Nuys'.
Domaine Anne Gros
Anne Gros joined her father François at the family domaine in Vosne Romanée in 1988, having given up her arts studies in favour of viticulture and oenology at Beaune and Dijon, she took charge of the domaine in 1995 and has been joined now by 2 of her children Julie since 2015 and Paul since 2017. The Domaine now has 7 hectares of Pinot and Chardonnay. Anne describes herself as being 'wary of certainties and keen to preserve her freedom'.
In the vineyards Anne practises viticulture influenced by organic and biodynamic principles, and the vineyards are ploughed and fertilised with compost, but although she believes that the long-term health of the vineyards are best preserved by such methods, she likes to maintain the freedom to use conventional treatments when necessary.
In the cellar, the wines are classically made, in cement tanks for the reds, and stainless steel for the whites. They are then aged in barrel for up to fifteen months, with 80% new wood for the grand crus, 50% for the village wines and 30% for the regional wines. Anne is quietly meticulous and almost obsessive about cleanliness in her cellar, which perhaps is reflected in the delicacy and restrained tension in her wines, which have aromatic clarity, limpid precision, sheer joie de vivre, lively balance and persistence.
Domaine Lignier-Michelot
A domaine of 11 hectares, 25% regionals, 50% Villages, 20% Premiers crus and 5% Grands Crus. Virgile Lignier worked at the domaine with his father Maurice from 1988, beginning to bottle some of the wine from 1992 (it had previously been sold to the négoce), taking over in 2000, which was the vintage when he first bottled all the domaine's production.
In the vineyard Virgile made significant changes, stopping the use of herbicides, and beginning to plough instead. Green harvesting to limits yields followed, along with greater attention to grape selection. The domaine works organically except in extremis.
The wines have a lovely combination of enough body and richness, combined with a lively clarity of expression. The old vines village cuvées are seriously good, and great value too. Going up the scale each site seems to speak very clearly of its source and there is a brightness and energy along with full, seamless fruit.
Domaine J. Confuron Cotetidot
Vignerons since the seventeenth century, the Confuron family has always selected and propagated vines to ensure that their plant material produces the highest quality, and they even have a clone of Pinot named after them - 'Pinot Confuron'.
The domaine has several Grands Cru vineyards as well as two hectares of the great Vosne Romanée Premier Cru 'Les Suchots'. There are around 12 hectares in all. The vines have never seen chemical weedkillers, and are ploughed and managed organically.
The Confurons have always used whole-bunch fermentation, picking very late, which really is a necessity if the stems are to be properly ripe and not give green flavours to the wine. A bit like the Thévenets with their whites in the Maconnais, they pick so much later that they can seem to have different vintages to everyone else. Yves thinks that 2007 was their great vintage of the first decade of this millennium, and he'd probably be the only grower in the Cote de Nuits who would say that. Yves also makes the wines at Domaine de Courcel in Pommard, in the same way.
Domaine Faiveley
The Faiveley family are the largest vineyard owners in Burgundy, owning around 120ha, spread across the Côtes de Nuits, Beaune and Chalonnaise and encompassing everything from generic Bourgogne up to the grandest of Grand Crus. Their own holdings supply the grapes for 5 out of every 6 bottles made by Faiveley, the balance being bought in from carefully selected contract growers.
Faiveley has been more and more impressive in recent years, and the combination of winemaker Jérôme Flous and an entirely new winery are taking them onwards and upwards year after year.
Domaine Joseph Drouhin
Joseph Drouhin, founded in 1880 and still family owned, are one of the most well-respected names in Burgundy, especially through their flagship wine, the iconic Clos des Mouches.
A huge part of the Drouhin production comes from their own domaine fruit (78 hectares), and much of the rest comes from contracts such as that with the Marquis de Laguiche, who shook hands with the grandfather of the current generation, agreeing to let him manage his vineyards which included an important part of Le Montrachet; this collaboration endures. Today, the fourth generation is at the helm
Small refinements continue to be made here. The presses have been changed - a reversion to basket pressing for the reds, and for whites the presses are open - along with a number of other growers they are following the trend to think that slight oxidation of the juice before fermentation is not a problem and may add complexity as well as avoiding later problems of premature oxidation in bottle.
For the reds there has been the introduction of selective whole-bunch fermentation in the Côte de Nuits wines. The house style remains one that 'emphasises the natural elegance of great Burgundies' as they describe it. The domaine is all cultivated with an organic and biodynamic approach.
Domaine Jean-Jacques Confuron
Domaine ‘JJ’ Confuron is named after the father of Sophie Meunier, who now runs the domaine with her husband Alain Meunier. Gradually they are handing it over to their son Louis.The domaine goes back to the marriage in 1926 of Jean Confuron de Vosne and Anne-Marie Bouchard de Premeaux, starting with the vines that they both inherited. Together, they acquired more and started selling their own bottled wine in the early 1930s. Jean died in 1965. They had two sons, Christian and Jean-Jacques, who worked together until 1980. Jean-Jacques set up his own estate in 1981, but he died in January 1983. From then on it was his wife Andrée Noëllat and his daughter Sophie who took care of the estate. Sophie met Alain Meunier at the Lycée agricole in Beaune and from the 1985 harvest they worked together. In 1988, Andrée received one hectare of vines from her grandfather Charles Noëllat's domaine, which included the important parcels in Romanée St-Vivant, Nuits Boudots and Vosne Beaux Monts.
Since Louis has taken over the winemaking there have been some changes, but as they have no fixed 'recipe' it is hard to be precise - the levels of new wood seem to have dropped slightly, and like a lot of growers Louis has used some whole-bunch fermentation. On the whole they are relatively early pickers, and the wines have a generous depth of fruit. Although they have been organic since the 1990's Louis is concerned that the soils are still not in the best of health, so he is trying grassing over - but is concerned that this can mean competition for the vines and lower yields. In general he's trying to improve biodiversity in the vineyards, but says that they are going at it by feel, with small changes to see what works - a very practical hands-on approach. He spends 80% of his time tending the vines, and is working to make the plants more resistant to disease and rot.
Jasper Morris was impressed on his visit to taste the 2022s "This may be the best range of red wines I have seen from the domaine, where Louis’ fine-tuning over the last few years is paying dividends in terms of precision and purity."
Thibault Liger-Belair Successeurs
The lack of the word 'domaine' in the name signals that this is a négociant wine from Thibault Liger-Belair. Thibault buys the grapes he picks having tended the vines with his own team, so that the wines are domaine wines in all but name.
Domaine Thibault Liger-Belair
The steady progression of this domaine has been fascinating to watch as Thibault gradually refines his approach to each parcel of vines. Viticulture is biodynamic (since 2005), yields low but not ludicrously low, everything is pragmatic, so that he should be doing just what is necessary and no more. He uses 40-50% new wood maximum, with wood chosen and aged by him, and barrels made with almost no toasting.
The wines are bright, pure, focused, aromatic and elegant without lacking anything in the way of stuffing. There is a range of wines produced from rented vines or from bought grapes, sold under the separate 'Thibault Liger-Belair Successeurs' label. To each parcel the team brings great experience and there is a coherence across the range, so that the whole enterprise can be regarded as one.
Domaine Georges Mugneret-Gibourg
Sisters Marie-Christine and Marie-Andrée have been firmly in control of this exceptional domaine since their mother Jacqueline retired in 2009. With one a pharmacist and the other an oenologist, the domaine was always going to be in safe hands as far as the wine-making was concerned. In 2017 Marie-Christine 's daughter Lucie joined the domaine, and in 2019 the sisters celebrated their 30th vintage - and Marion and Fanny, daughters of Marie-Andrée also joined the team.
These are top-flight Burgundies with that elusive balance of enough concentration allied with delicacy of expression and the capability of ageing well.
Since 2016 they have put a small amount of whole bunches in some of the cuvées, more as a way to have sufficient volume in the vats than because they like the effect.
Domaine des Lambrays
The 'Clos' consists of 8.66 hectares of land enclosed by a wall in which there is the original milestone marking its founding in 1365, confirmed in the records of the Abbaye de Citeaux (those monks knew where to place a vineyard). The Clos owes much of its current fame to the nineteenth and twentieth century proprietors who reconstituted it after the fragmentation of ownership which followed the French revolution. Despite always having been considered a Grand Cru site, the Clos was in fact classified Premier Cru in the original 1936 appellations contrôlées. The Rodier family which owned it from the 1930s fought to regain its Grand cru status, with eventual success only in 1981, when it became the last of the thirty-three Grands Crus of Burgundy, although by then it had passed to the Saier family. Recently under the benign ownership of the Günther Freund and his family, who gave a very free hand to régisseur Thierry Brouin, who had been employed by their predecessor Rolland Pelletier de Chambure, the quality of the wines here has pushed up again. In 2014 it was bought by the LVMH group.
It has been all rather quick change here as Jacques Devauge has taken over here after a short interregnum under Boris Champy. The legacy of Thierry Brouin can still be felt, Jacques describing him as having been 'clairvoyant' in his approach to the domaine, which has set it up well to deal with challenges of warmer vintages. Jacques seems set to take this estate onward - 'every domaine has to challenge itself to do better', he says. In 2021 the domaine was in its third year of organic certification and second for biodynamics.
Since 2019 the vinifications have been by parcel, and the different cuvées are laid out in barrel in the cellar as they come from the hill, which is a fun visual aid to the tasting. We did not manage to visit this year but by all accounts Jacques is very happy in his new cathedral-like vat room used for the first time for the 2022 vintage, and the wines are better than ever.
