Domaine Confuron-Contetidot Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru ‘Lavaut St Jacques’ 2019

Why is this Wine so Yummy?

About Domaine Confuron-Cotétidot

When La Revue du Vin de France 2012 edition made this domaine only the 10th domaine in the Côte de Nuits to be felt worthy of the magical three stars, alongside the likes of Roumier, Mugnier and Rousseau, it was black and white recognition of the dramatic progress this domaine had made over the previous five or six years.

Brothers Yves and Jean-Pierre Confuron have carried on the traditions at the historic Domaine Confuron-Cotetidot that would certainly make their ancestors proud; the family continues to lead the way in séléction massale as it has since the 17th century, and even boasts a clone of the noble Pinot Noir in their name.

The domaine remains one of the rare few to produce four village wines among 11 hectares in Burgundy’s prestigious Côte de Nuits (Nuits-St-Georges, Vosne-Romanée, Chambolle-Musigny and Gevrey-Chambertin), in addition to a number of premier cru and grand cru sites. Today, Yves directs the domaine and Jean-Pierre works in the cellar, while their parents Jacky and Bernadette work the vineyards as carefully as they have for more than fifty years.

The success of the house style has earned the two respected roles as consultants to neighbouring estates as well. Theirs is old-school red Burgundy at its best.

That the land has never seen synthetic herbicides or pesticides distinguishes Domaine Confuron-Cotetidot from the bulk of their peers in Burgundy, where more holistic vineyard practices can be a challenge. While they incorporate organic practices into their farming, they are not interested in being tied down by the strict confines that certifying agencies dictate. Regular ploughing and short pruning (with an occasional green harvest) keep yields low, between 35-45 hl/ha, on what are generally very old vines.

The Style

… the house style is decidedly old school and there’s no point buying these wines without the express intention of aging them over the longer-term.

Allen Meadows

Harvests are always later than most to ensure ripe stems. The grapes are then fermented in whole clusters, undergoing long cuvaisons of 2 to 3 weeks, and extended barrel-aging up to 2 years. New oak levels range from 10-20% in the village wines and up to 50% in the grand crus. Bottled unfined and unfiltered, the wines display incredible aromatic intensity, spicy fruit, and an elegant minerality from their exceptional terroirs.

One of the strengths of Confuron Cotetidot wines is their ability to age and develop, due to the low yields and old vines that are used, causing them to be more approachable in the medium to long term.

In the last few years even in their youth the wines have been wonderfully aromatic and seductive. Wines full of character, terroir, aromatics, accessibility and longevity. Yves’ signature wine if his Vosne 1er Cru Les Suchots, of which he has a very friendly two hectares, divided into two parcels, which border Echezeaux, the other Romanée-Saint-Vivant. This combination of elegance and power, spice and fragrance is a delight. If you like the serious built-to-age old school style, this is one of the very best addresses around.

The 2019 Vintage at Confuron-Cotétidot

Yves Confuron (who is also the régisseur at Domaine de Courcel in Pommard), succinctly described 2019 as he did 2018, which is to say as a “hot, dry and ripe vintage though one with more vines suffering hydric stress and as such the tannins are less ripe than they were in 2018. Because of this I felt that it was absolutely necessary to wait to pick and thus we didn’t start until the 22nd of September. The fruit was super-clean and solidly ripe with very little sorting required. As to the wines, I found that those coming from cooler terroirs are better balanced than those coming from warmer sectors.” As I always underscore, the house style is decidedly old school and there’s no point buying these wines without the express intention of aging them over the longer-term.

Allen Meadows, Burghound

Where in the World is

Confuron-Cotétidot is based in Vosne-Romanée in the Côte de Nuits with holdings in Nuits-St-Georges, Vougeot, Chambolle-Musigny, Gevrey-Chambertin and Pommard. An epic 2 Ha of ‘Les Suchot’ in Vosne-Romanée, smack bang between Romané-Saint-Vivant and Grands Echézeaux, the historic jewel in the crown.

Want to know more about Burgundy check out these articles from the Wine Bites Mag:

Getting Your Head Around Burgundy Part 1 – Vineyards, Classifications & Villages

Getting Your Head Around Burgundy Part 2 – Tiny Old Vines & Heaps of them!

Getting Your Head Around Burgundy Part 3 – Get it in your Gob. Tasting the Villages, Classifications, the Phases of Ageing