Burgundy’s Avant Garde

It has been a long journey from cutting hair in Melbourne, Australia to being La Revue de France’s Négociant of the Year, but over the last 18 years of being based in Côte-d’Or, Jane Eyre has made her mark there as a leading micro-négociant.

Her experience and exposure within the region have opened doors to some incredible fruit sources, with the fruit for her Santenay 1er Cru Gravières coming  from certified organic and biodynamic vines. Just four barrels were produced, with one being new.

Jane’s adaptable approach to wine-making considers the fruit and vintage’s particulars; 30% whole bunches were used for fermentation (as compared to 0% in 2017). She is a firm believer that “ultimately vintage and vineyard should trump your winemaking”. 

Jane is not only the first Australian and woman to be named Négociant of the Year by La Revue de France, she is also listed as one of only 26 ‘Two Star’ Producers in Le Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France 2021.

Sylvain Pataille is amongst the first of today’s winemakers to achieve the highest level of technical training, before beginning to craft his own wines. A highly-regarded consulting oenologist who still advises over 15 Burgundy domaines, Pataille’s domaine has grown to roughly 15 hectares since its beginnings in 1999, all in Marsannay—the northern-most and most recent AOC of the Côte de Nuits.

Pataille farms organically, with the domaine transitioning towards full biodynamics. His Marsannay Rouge is a blend of multiple terroirs within the village, planted between 1950 to 1980. 30% whole-cluster was used for the natural fermentation, aging for 18 months in older oak barrels.

His fastidious work in the vines and minimal, measured approach in the cellar have shed light on the potential of Marsannay as one of its leading producers.

Unfortunately for wine drinkers, the prices of Burgundy have skyrocketed in the last decade with demand surpassing supply for many in the Côte d’Or. At the same time, the quality of satellite regions within Burgundy, such as the Côte Chalonnaise, have grown as well.

Dureuil-Janthial are trailblazers of wine production in Rully and Mercurey, where the majority of their vines are located. Ever since Vincent Dureuil took the reins in 1994, the estate has gone from strength to strength, with an ability to produce both whites and reds of excellent quality—an art perfected by few winemakers only.

Farmed with organic practices, Dureuil-Janthial’s Rully Rouge ‘En Guesnes’ demonstrates his painstaking approach towards quality. Individual berries were cut from the bunches—a practice seen only amongst a select few in Burgundy such as Lalou-Bize Leroy, Arnaud Mortet and Charles Lachaux. Other bunches were kept intact, for 50% whole cluster fermentation. The wine was aged in one-third new oak for a year, followed by a further 6 months in tank.

Vincent Dureuil has long held the respect of fellow winemakers for the quality of his work and was most recently lauded as ‘Winemaker of the Year 2019’ by Revue des Vins de France.

Helm of the iconic Domaine Hudelot-Noëllat in Chambolle-Musigny since 2008, Charles van Canneyt is a name familiar to Burgundy connoisseurs. While their work in both the vines and the cellar have shown remarkable refinement, Charles remains true to the family’s signature style of wine-making.

With Burgundy’s ever-increasing land price, vineyard acquisition is nearly impossible, pushing more of the current generation towards including a négociant range to their wine production. Charles began his eponymous négociant label in 2012, born out of a vision to step out of the family’s shadow at Hudelot-Noëllat, with the freedom to create a wine that is truly his own.

The wine follows a path in the cellar similar to those of Hudelot-Noëllat, striving first and foremost for terroir expression and seeing only a modest amount of new oak across the cuvées. The élevage takes place in Charles’ cellars, receiving the same level of attention as those of the Domaine.

Charles’ négoce venture is representative of the current generation, forced to work with new appellations and terroirs—no doubt, for results worth their while.

Burgundy is a region with great history and multi-generational stories, yet few domaines can boast 28 generations in their history. The Clerget family dates back to 1268, but it is also a story of re-birth—with the young Thibault Clerget bringing Domaine Yvon Clerget back to life in 2015. Having apprenticed at Henri Boillot and Hudelot-Noëllat, Thibaud honed his winemaking style under some of Burgundy’s leading producers of today. From his inaugural release, Thibaud has gathered somewhat of a cult following, credited to the outstanding quality across his entire range.

His Volany 2018 comes from two parcels of old vines around 50 years old in Les Petits Gamets and Ez Echards, which are noted for producing particularly small berries. The smaller berries lead to a concentration in the fruits and flavours, without losing nuance and subtlety. No new oak was used in this wine, retaining the purity and expression of the fruit.

Despite being barely 30 years old, Thibaud has garnered such attention for his wines and is on track to becoming one of the leading red producers of the Côte de Beaune.

Burgundian Camille Thiriet and Canadian Matt Chittick first met while working together at Domaine de Bellene and Maison Roche de Bellene. There they worked with a variety of growers spanning more than 75 appellations within the Côte. Such access allowed them to develop Maison Thiriet, while sourcing only the best fruit from growers they know and admire. That said, production is tiny, with wines also being produced from the Jura and Vezelay—north-east of the Côte d’Or, between Côte d’Or and Chablis.

The Côte de Nuits Villages ‘Aux Montagnes’ comes from a parcel located next to the Château de Comblanchien, where they make their wines. The village of Comblanchien lies just south of Nuits-St-Georges, yet is rarely seen as it falls under the classification of Côte de Nuits Villages. The plot is 50 years old and farmed organically, aged only in old oak.

Since their first vintage in 2016, they have been making waves within circles of Burgundy drinkers who now have their attention on other appellations outside of the more famous villages.