Maison Louis Jadot Chambertin Grand Cru 2019

Why is this Wine so Yummy?

Just like 2019 was no ordinary vintage in Burgundy, Louis Jadot is no ordinary Negociant! With close to 160 years of experience and owning more than 150 hectares of vineyards across Burgundy (70 Ha of which lie in the Côte d’Or), Chef de Cave Frederic Barnier has extraordinary control over his fruit source from top to bottom. In a great year such as 2019, the wonderfully warm, sunny summer resulted in magnificently ripe and healthy berries even in the more marginal appellations. In short 2019 is a vintage which will not disappoint from Village, Premier Cru and Grand Cru alike. As Frederic Barnier said “The wines will rival the best we have made in a very long time”

… I was seriously impressed by the overall quality Jadot produced in 2019. Moreover, the quality is largely good everywhere, even in typically ignored communes such as Nuits. And I was really impressed by their stunningly good wines from Volnay and Gevrey.

Allen Meadows, Burghound

Burgundy has shifted in through a cycle dominated by negociants who purchased barrels of wine and bottled them under their own name to growers bottling under their own name, often without using the vineyard names, then adding all of the Cru and Lieux Dits names.

In that time the negociants shifted to taking greater involvement in vineyards, and owning vineyards.

The best has invested heavily in their owned vineyards, working with vineyard owners to raise the quality of their fruit, and evolving slowly to find the balance between time tested winemaking techniques and innovation through science.

Louis Jadot has been able to carefully navigate the changes in Burgundy, and smoothly transition custodianship from Jacques Lardière, a veteran of 42 vintages at Jadot, to Fréderic Barnier who has lead Jadot since 2012.

About Maison Louis Jadot

Maison Louis Jadot was established in 1859 by Louis Henri Denis Jadot and developed by succeeding generations. In 1985 their US distributor Rudi Kopf purchased the business while also purchasing Domaine Clair Daü (which brought with it Grand Crus of Chambertin Clos de Bèze, Bonnes Mares, Clos Vougeot and Corton Grèves).

Domaine des Héritiers Louis Jadot has long belonged to the Jadot family and includes the original Louis Jadot Monopole Beaune Premier Cru ‘Clos des Ursules’ vineyard, purchased in 1826, plus Corton Pougets  and Corton Charlemagne. Pierre Henri-Gagey, current President succeeded his father André Gagey in 1992 and today his son Thibault is deeply involved in Louis Jadot. Domaine Gagey has been in their family for generations, and in­cludes great vineyards in Clos Saint Denis and Echézeaux.

Domaine du Duc de Magenta is not strictly owned by Louis Jadot, but is on a very long term, exclusive contract for the Chassa­gne Montrachet Premier Cru Morgeot ‘Clos de la Chapelle’. In the 1990’s Louis Jadot invested in vineyards such as Côte de Nuits Villages Le Vaucrain and Beaujolais Chateau des Jacques Moulin-a-Vent and Morgon, and began working their own cooperage, Cadus, based in Ladoix.

Enjoy these fascinating podcast with Levi Dalton & Jacques Lardière who look after Jadot for 42 vintages and his successor Frederic Barnier. As Levi notes, you’ll definitely have to listen to the one with Jacques twice to even start to get your head around the discussion.

In the Vineyard

The Louis Jadot Domaine (comprised of 125 hectares over 28 communes, 298 parcels and 45 growers) is spread across three geographic centres, each working with its own team and its own tools, which minimises Louis Jadot’s carbon footprint across the broader Burgundian region.

In the Winery

From Frederic Barnier via Burghound
The fruit was essentially spotless save for some sunburned berries that sorting tables now remove easily. Yields were not great though to be fair, neither were they truly dismal as the chardonnay came in between 33 and 35 hl/ha and the pinot was basically between 30 and 34 hl/ha. Interestingly, the potential alcohols were essentially the same for both colors, ranging as they did between 13.8 and 14.2%. I chose to use a bit of whole cluster, but it wasn’t systematic. I used a light hand with the extractions as it would have been easy to have had an excess of tannins. The fermentations passed easily and the malos for many reds were finished before Christmas. By contrast, I chose to block on average 50% of the malolactic fermentation to help them retain more natural acidity. As to the wines, they have excellent energy and transparency with good mid-palate fat. As such, 2019 should be one of those vintages that will provide early drinking pleasure but also reward at least mid-term cellaring.

Red Winemaking at Louis Jadot
Louis Jadot’s wineries are the envy of any serious winemaker. Blending simplicity of tried and tested techniques & equipment with the possibilities science and technology offer.

2019 Côte d’Or vintage report by Frederic Barnier

“2019 vintage was a particularly dry growing season that began with a very dry winter that did not refill the underlying ground water like it normally does. The vegetative cycle once again began early…raising the risk of early season frost, which unfortunately occurred on the 5th and 14th of April…The cold on the 14th didn’t do much damage as everyone was organised but the cold snap on the 5th did do a fair amount of damage, especially in the lower areas and in Chassagne. The hopes of a normal crop size were further hurt when the flowering did not pass well, particularly for Chardonnay. Add to this late June and July heat waves…. Welcome rain in August relieved any hydric stress and allowed veraison to get going early…Warm weather and strong winds in early September saw the grapes develop great levels of concentration and accelerated ripening…”

The Whites
The poor flowering and fruit set coupled with the hot, dry conditions in June & July resulted in yields about 50% down. There is no lack of concentration on the whites, and the balance between sugar levels and acidity is very good thanks to exemplary pH levels. The management of the malolactic fermentation was critical, average around 50% blocked to retain natural acidity. The wines have great energy and transparency, with good mid-palate weight.

The Reds
For the reds, ripeness levels were ideal, and yields a little higher than for the reds. Any concerns that the skins of the red grapes wouldn’t worry were needless. To the contrary, what we’ve seen is an astonishing level of finesse and the wines from this vintage are already extremely tasty. The colours are rich and the fruit reassuringly fresh.

Where in the World is Louis Jadot

Louis Jadot is based in Beaune, but their wines come from parcels all across Burgundy. The Maison owns more than 150 hectares of vineyards, 70 Ha of which lie in the Côte d’Or, ranging from Villages to some of the most sought after Premier and Grand Cru parcels in the region.

This particular wine comes from Chambertin.