Domaine de la Vougeraie

Historical

The name comes from the significant holdings – and indeed Jean-Claude Boisset’s home – in the village of Vougeot. The winery, however, is located in the old Claudine Deschamps (Madame Jean-Claude Boisset) cellars in Premeaux. The domaine was put together from the various vineyard holdings which had accrued through the Boisset acquisitions of Burgundian houses over the years. Pascal Marchand was put in charge in 1999, with Bernard Zito in the vineyards, which were farmed biodynamically. Pascal produced powerful wines, fairly heavily extracted in his early vintages but clearly was moving towards a softer style by 2004.

Viticulture & Vinification

Pierre Vincent took over as winemaker after the 2005 vintage and developed a more delicate approach. The grapes are sorted on one of the longest tables de tri I have seen, before being given a cool pre-maceration. During fermentation Pierre preferred to punch down only once a day, much less than Pascal used to, and he soon reduced the new wood component and significantly increased the use of whole bunches. The same style continues since Pierre’s departure in 2016.

The red wines continue in their elegant style, favouring whole bunch vinification and a light hand on extraction, partly managed by maintaining lower temperatures (maximum 26°C) during fermentation, then pressing with modern vertical presses which certainly deliver more finesse than a typical pneumatic press. The wines are then matured in around 30% new wood, being racjked into older wood at the post-malolactic racking.

The white wines are pressed, given only a brief settling, stirred just a couple of times before Christmas, with 25% new wood for most wines. The barrels are usually now in larger sizes, and are often made from oak trees in the neighbouring Forêt de Cîteaux.

Vineyards

At the base of the pyramid sit substantial cuvees of Bourgogne Blanc and Rouge known as Terres de Famille which also include declassified younger vines from more senior appellations. There is a wide range of village wines, featuring in red the Gevrey-Chambertin Les Evocelles which was the first vineyard to be acquired and planted by the young Jean-Claude Boisset in 1964. For a period there was one small plot of 0.18 hectare just under the forest which has been planted à la foule with 36,000 plants per hectare.

At the top of the pinot tree there are five thrilling grands crus. Two which consistently stand out are the supple, sensual Bonnes Mares, despite the fact that the main block appears to be les well situated in a small quarry adjacent to the main road, and the ancient vines (planted 1914) of the Charmes-Chambertin Les Mazoyères.

Among the whites, few domaines can offer Bienvenues-Bâtard, Bâtard- and Chevalier Montrachet, all of which are excellent with the domaine taking particular pleasure in the first of them, but the two wines which most catch the eye are the Charlemagne and Clos Blanc de Vougeot. Originally the domaine made a Corton-Charlemagne Le Charlemagne but when a second plot arrived which was in ‘En’ rather than ‘Le’ Charlemagne, they decided to revive the almost defunct but still existing appellation of Charlemagne.

The exceptional Vougeot 1er Cru Clos Blanc de Vougeot vineyard makes arguably the finest white wine of the Côte de Nuits every year, from the monopole adjacent to grand cru Clos de Vougeot, a patch of land which has been planted in white grapes since time immemorial.

New vineyards continue come on stream as the Boisset empire expands.

Red Wines

White Wines