Description
This relatively small 7 hectare estate has been in existence for four generations. It is run by the amiable couple, Anne and Hervé Sigaut who are wonderful, low-key folks, true people of the earth who love what they do and clearly work hard to make the absolute best wines that they can, not for the outside praise, but rather because their inner ‘Burgundian compasses’ guide them to do so. Although they collaborate on all aspects of the production, she is a bit more in vineyards and commerce, and he more in the cellar. Because they don’t own any Grand Cru vineyards, they have largely remained “under-the-radar” in a village that certainly doesn’t lack for anointed stars. The range of premiers crus is diverse and first rate, including Fuées, Chatelots, Noirots and Sentiers, as well as small parcels in the Morey 1er crus, Millandes and Charrières.
Like their understated personalities and attitudes, the Sigauts prefer to make wines on the fine and delicate side, that caress rather than clobber. They are helped by a bevy of old vines, many 50-60+ years old, that have long ago tapped the mother rock of limestone that is the signature of Chambolle’s wines. The vines are meticulously worked and tended during the growing season, as naturally and respectfully as possible. “We are 100% organic from the flowering on”, says Anne Sigaut, “and before that, we intervene only when absolutely necessary if it is a question of saving the harvest. We also time our work in the vineyards and cellar to follow the cycles of the moon”.
At the harvest, like most top estates now in Burgundy, the crew picks carefully by hand, with a sorting both in the vineyard and in the cellar on a table de trie. The grapes are then de-stemmed and fermented with indigenous yeasts with a gentle regime of maceration over the 3 week cuvaison. The wines are then pressed and moved by gravity to barrel for the élévage in 10-33% new oak, depending on the cuvée. The wines stay in barrel in general for 15-16 months, and are then racked by gravity to tank where they are held for a couple of months to harmonize and clarify naturally before a bottling without fining and filtration.
And if you love “true” Chambolle – as we do – you will fall in love with these wines, as we have.
A refined vintage born in serenity.
“It feels good, especially after the 2018 harvest that required constant attention”, recalls Anne Sigaut. The extraordinarily healthy grapes matured effortlessly in the nonstop sun brought by an early summer heatwave. It barely rained in August and not a single drop of rain fell in September. The only concern that year was preventing the berries from drying out because of the multiple heatwaves before harvesting. “We decided to go in the vineyards three weeks before the harvest to cut off the grapes that had been fried by the sun. I am very grateful for my female staff!” adds Anne Sigaut. The harvest began on September 12th, earlier than usual, yet slightly later than in 2018. These additional days made the fruits more balanced, with no excess sugar (around 13.5° potential). Always aiming to protect the fruits’ freshness, the Domaine chose to only harvest in the morning, even if it meant asking the grape pickers to be ready to start work at 7am. Their efforts were not in vain: yields were satisfying, except in the plots in the village of Chambolle and Les Fuées 1er cru which suffered from dry weather conditions. Most importantly, the vines offer great harmony, with silky tannins and beautiful aromatic elegance. The 2019 vintage superbly highlights the floral notes characteristic of Chambolle-Musigny wines.
TASTING
Vivid, it reveals on the first approach nice touches of small berries, especially raspberries. Its texture is fine, delicate, of medium length. Undergrowth aging requires subtle dosage (25% new barrels). We could easily think of this wine as a Chambolle-Musigny and not a Morey-Saint-Denis. But it is important to go beyond some preconceptions… To pair with roasted pigeon.
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