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Maison Faiveley |
Maison Faiveley is the éleveur for our Hospice de Nuits wines. One of the largest Domaines in Burgundy, Faiveley is in its sixth generation of family ownership. François Faiveley would have been a parfumier had his family not already owned a winery, and he values the limitless aromatic possibilities of his Burgundies above all else. Faiveley uses barrels (approximately half new) made from Vosges oak purchased as trees and dried on the estate. The wines are racked from new cask to old cask, and the premiers and grands crus are bottled by hand, unfiltered. The wines are elegant examples of pure Burgundy.
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Maison Jadot |
Maison Louis Jadot, in spite of being one of the largest negociants in Burgundy, somehow manages to turn out over one hundred different cuvées of flawless, remarkably ageworthy (90+ years!), characterful, living, terroir-expressing wines every year. Jacques Lardière, winemaker ever since the 1971 vintage which he saved with his magical touch, does not follow conventional rules, yet his wines are invariably clean, dry, and beautifully redolent of their particular appellation. The key is intervening as little as possible and tasting every barrel with great regularity, leaving nothing to chance. The oak treatment is also counter to the norm. The better the vintage (and richer the wine), the less new oak is used, normally about 50% in off years and 15% in good ones. Under Lardière’s elévage, new oak seems to round out lean wines instead of overpowering them, and the great wines he makes are so complete that they do not need the extra body and flavor imparted by new barrels.
These results come from an innate and intimate understanding of every vineyard site that he vinifies. He knows in advance how every batch of grapes will react to the conditions imposed upon it, and hence can leave the wine to raise itself.
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Domain Alain Michelot |
| Alain Michelot oversees a small domaine consisting of seven different Nuits St. Georges premiers crus. A very knowledgeable, introspective winemaker, he tends to achieve healthy yields from his tightly spaced, individually replanted vines. In his impeccably clean cellar, grapes are 90% destemmed, then placed in cement cuves for a 2-3 day cold maceration, then a long, slow fermentation with its own yeast. Some cuves are saignéed if necessary, and press wine is generally added once the fermentation is complete. The cuves are then covered and left for a month’s débourbage. The wine is then placed in barrels, 30-50% new, and left for 20 months without racking. This refines the tannins, and the lack of large lees obviates the need for fining. Alain simply does a light filtration.
The resultant wines, balanced, rich and smooth, provide a wonderful tutorial on the characteristics of the various Nuits St. Georges vineyards. Terroir is paramount, with primary Pinot fruit flavors, complex aromas and, according to Remington Norman, plenty of guts. While built for the long haul, they are meant to enjoy at any age.
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Domaine Senard |
| In 1857, Jules Senard, great-grandfather of the current owner, created a vineyard called Clos des Meix, 2.5 hectares in surface. It has belonged to the Domaine ever since. As the years went by, the acquisition of distinguished names - Corton Clos du Roi, Corton Bressandes, and Corton Charlemagne - increased the prestige and fame of the Domaine Comte Senard.
The family's domain now covers a total of 9 hectares and enables us to offer an incomparable selection of vintages. Matured in the cellars of the estate, built in the XIIIth century by the Benedictine monks of the Abbey of Sainte-Marguerite, the wines carry a guarantee of quality.
Count Philippe Senard has directed the estate since 1971. In 1989, he took over the Domaine des Terregelesses and has since been responsible for the management, the vinification and sales of Corton Charlemagne, Savigny-lès-Beaune Premier Cru, Savigny-lès-Beaune, Beaune and Chorey-lès-Beaune. His daughter Lorraine will ensure the continuity of the domain.
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