Domaine Thibault Liger-Belair Nuits-Saint-Georges ‘Les Belles Croix’ 2019

Why is this Wine so Yummy?

About Thibault Liger-Belair

The Liger-Belair family has passed down the tradition of winemaking from generation to generation for the past 250 years. In 1720, Claude Marey, the king’s secretary, mayor of Nuits-Saint-Georges, and a vineyard proprietor, founded the C. Marey house to sell his fine wines. In 1804 his youngest son, Guillaume Felix Marey, took over the business. In 1852, Guillaume’s nephew, Comte LigerBelair, proprietor of Grands Crus in Vosne-Romanée, became his business partner under the name “C. Marey et Comte Liger-Belair”. The domaine was passed down through the family for the next five generations. In 1982, Xavier Liger-Belair died and the business was sold. That same year Xavier’s son, Vincent Liger-Belair, took over the buildings and restructured the domaine by having three sharecropper winemakers handle the work.

Then in 2001, Vincent’s son, Thibault Liger-Belair, took over the vines as the winemaker and created Domaine Thibault Liger-Belair. Prior to joining the family domaine, Thibault studied viticulture and oenology for six years, and worked for a communications firm in Paris where he was able to present and taste wines internationally. In his mid-twenties, Thibault also started an internet company with the idea of discovering and selling high quality wines. But the calling of the vines was still strong, so in 2001, at the age of 26, Thibault decided to jump to the other side of the fence, this time to make wine, his true calling and passion. The year 2002 was the first harvest of the Nuits-Saint-Georges, Nuits-Saint-Georges Charmottes, as well as Vosne-Romanée Aux Réas. In 2003, the domaine enriched its range with Richebourg Grand Cru, Clos Vougeot Grand Cru, Vosne-Romanée Premier Cru Petits Monts, and Bourgogne Rouge. In 2009, the domaine expanded into Beaujolais, and now a Beaujolais-Villages and several Moulin-à-Vent Cru wines are also produced.

In the Vineyard

The different appellations are cultivated and worked in different ways according to their soil and climate. The richness of the terroirs demands that each individual parcel is handled distinctly, rather than systematic work as is often done. The role Liger-Belair imposes on himself consists of “listening” to the vine and observing it closely. His responsibility is to better answer its needs and thus to help it realize all its natural potential – not to require that it produce large quantities of grapes, but to produce a limited quantity of exceptional quality. The domaine vineyards are certified organic by Ecocert.

In the Winery

Now comfortably ensconced in his new winery on the outskirts of Nuits Saint-Georges, Thibaut Liger-Belair has finally settled into a facility that gifts his team space and hygiene.

Thibault Liger-Belair’s philosophy is to bring in the grapes to the winery in an impeccable sanitary state and to handle each operation delicately. He aims to infuse instead of extract. His belief is that the less one mistreats the grape, the better the wine will be. Three coopers are used at the domaine: Tonnelerie François Frères, Tonnellerie Mercurey, and Tonnellerie Dominique Laurent. Thibault LigerBelair closely follows the wood selection according to the texture and origin and imposes a three-year drying period before barrels are made. This allows the use of perfectly dry wood which obtains superior tannin quality, making them much silkier and delicate. Rarely is more than 50% new wood used at Domaine Liger-Belair. The wines are aged according to their appellations, between 14 and 18 months, without racking or any other aeration. They are neither fined nor filtered.

The 2019 Vintage at Thibault Liger-Belair

From Burghound:

Thibault Liger-Belair, who is the cousin of Louis-Michel Liger-Belair (see above), commented that 2019 is a “surprising vintage in a sense because how such a hot and dry vintage could produce such fresh, energetic and terroir-driven wines isn’t obvious. I am however convinced that our biodynamic viticulture helped the vines resist the hydric stress induced by the growing season and while yields were down in general, we lost very little to sorting. I began picking on the 10th of September in Beaujolais and then continued with our Côte d’Or vines where the fruit was ripe and super-clean. I used from 0 to 70% whole clusters depending on the sector and vinified softly as I thought it was important to try to obtain the finest tannins that I could. As to the wines, as I mentioned they are fresh with lovely textures along with an abundance of salinity that makes them all the more refreshing and attractive.”

From Vinous:

The wines were balanced so we did a light vinification, maybe just a little more extraction than in 2018. I had the impression that you could do anything you want – you couldn’t make a mistake. I did around 5-6 punch downs in Les Saint-Georges in total but it varies between crus. We taste in the morning and decide what we should do in terms of extraction. It is a very floral vintage and you can tell that when you nose the empty glass. It is clear to see the terroirs, more so than in 2018.”

Liger-Belair’s 2019s showed well and maybe do have their nose ahead of the previous year. The Richebourg aside, the cuvée that caught my eye was the over-performing Vosne-Romanée Aux Réas and another superb Nuits Saint-Georges Les Saint Georges. Generally I found very good use of whole bunches here, though one or two wines showed a little hardness or toughness on the finish that will need time to soften.

Where in the World is Thibault Liger-Belair?

Thibault Liger-Belair is based in the Côte-de-Nuits village Nuits-Saint-Georges with holdings in Nuits-Saint-Georges, Vosne-Romanée, Chambolle-Musigny, Gevrey-Chambertin, Corton and Beaujolais. This wine is from Chambolle-Musigny.