The ambitious Christophe Perrot-Minot is meticulous in everything he does. The finesse and velvety texture in his recent vintages have undoubtedly raised the domaine to the highest ranks of the Côte de Nuits, as well-known Burgundian wine critics have testified. The emphasis on low yields, particularly so in recent vintages, as well as careful extractions and élevages have resulted in wines noteworthy for the exceptional purity of their fruit.
Based in Morey Saint-Denis, Domaine Henri Perrot-Minot has impressive holdings including, among other notable parcels, their Charmes-Chambertin, Chambertin Mazoyères, as well as several prestigious lieux-dits in Morey and Chambolle. With their acquisition of the domaine Pernin-Rossin in 2000, Christophe added plots in the communes of Nuits St Georges and Vosne-Romanée to his family’s vineyards, including the exceptional premier cru La Richemone in Nuits-Saint-Georges, and Les Beaux Monts in Vosne. The impressive range of wines is complemented with high-voltage négoce bottlings of grands cru Chambertin, Clos de Bèze, Chapelle Chambertin and Clos Vougeot.

The Lecheneaut brothers focus mainly on producing fine villages-level wines, from all the appellations in the Côte de Nuits, except Fixin. As a result, they are an ideal way of comparing appellations such as Marsannay, Gevrey, Morey, Chambolle, Vosne and Nuits. The wines are made ​​conscientiously, and the unremitting quality from vintage to vintage is steady as a metronome. They are elegantly oaked, making for pleasant drinking during the wines’ early years, and mellow beautifully after several years in a cellar.

Their cuvée Les Damodes, from Nuits-Saint-Georges, is always a favorite. A superb lieu-dit perched at the northern edge of Nuits (just above the premier cru Boudots, neighboring the Vosne premier cru Malconsorts), Les Damodes is split between premier cru vines and village vines. After producing just one label of village-level wine for many years, they now isolate the premier cru, and the grapes from the village-level vines of their vineyard now bonify the Nuits-St-Georges cuvée.

The estate produces one grand cru, Clos de la Roche. It famously received a perfect score of 100 from Wine Advocate with the 2002 vintage, and was touted by the Japanese manga The Drops of God. Unfortunately they vinify but one barrel per year.

Pierre Damoy’s vineyards occupy 10.5 hectares, including a whopping 8 hectares spread over of the grands crus Chambertin, Chambertin-Clos-de-Bèze, and Chapelle-Chambertin. For the past two decades, this domaine has been a source of exceptional wine, largely due to their unrelenting investments in both time and effort, both in the vineyard (where they keep yields low and seek to grow healthy grapes without any chemical additives) and in the cellar (where they rigorously sort the grapes and the élevages are overseen with great attention to detail).

Since we began selling wine in 1996, Le Maître de Chai has worked with Domaine René Bouvier.

Originally established in Marsannay, the domaine is now based in Gevrey, where it continues under the stewardship of Bernard Bouvier, René’s son. Owners of superb parcels in Marsannay, their holdings also include choice plots in Fixin and Gevrey. The range is rounded out by several négoce cuvees of premier crus and grand crus from the Côte de Nuits, made from purchased grapes that are both harvested and vinified by the domaine.
Bernard Bouvier is both an artisan and entrepreneur: he is genuinely curious, hardworking, charismatic and ambitious. His dynamic personality comes through in his wines. But he is also a superb communicator and has been an exceptional ambassador for the Côte d’Or.
The wines of the domaine used to have a reputation for their solid structure, but today they emphasize juiciness and suave textures, and all at very accessible prices! The increase in quality over the past few vintages is obvious for anyone who has tasted a Bouvier wine. With their gains in purity and elegance, this domaine has become a standard-bearer for Burgundy lovers.

Thibault Liger-Belair, based in Nuits St-Georges, is at the helm of a “young” historical domaine that he created in 2001, when he took over family vineyards that had long been contracted out to various share croppers. His cousin is the famous Vicomte Liger-Belair of Vosne Romanee, who represents the other branch in the Liger-Belair family tree.

A young winemaker, Thibault has risen rapidly to the upper echelons of Burgundy’s elite. His meteoric ascent is due in no small part to his impressive holdings, including Richebourg, Clos de Vougeot, and an over 2 hectare parcel of Les Saint-Georges, the most prestigious premiers cru in Nuits Saint-Georges. But the terroir isn’t responsible for everything: Thibault, it goes without saying, is a phenomenal vigneron.

He seeks more than anything to allow the expression of terroir in his wines, which is why all of his vineyards are farmed biodynamically. He also uses horses to plough his vineyards, whenever possible. Vineyard yields are drastically low, allowing him to focus on gentle extractions, with very little punching down or pumping over. For some cuvées, a certain amount of whole clusters are used. In recent vintages, he’s made significant progress and his wines are constantly improving in terms of definition and purity. The hard work of putting his fields back in order has started to pay dividends. The Domaine expanded to the Beuajolais in 2009 with the acquisition of vineyards in Moulin-à-Vent.

At Domaine Confuron-Cotetidot, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

The pater familias, Jacky, is both a formidable vigneron as well as quite the character. His sons, Yves and Jean-Pierre, are now in charge of the keeping this domaine in the upper echelons of Burgundy. Confuron-Cotetidot is among the select few wineries to have been awarded three stars by Le Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France.
The wines are always vinified with whole clusters. How do we know? Ask them and they will respond simply: “we don’t own a destemmer.” This necessitate using the ripest grapes possible which involves an element of risk considering Burgundy’s testy Autumn climate. In any given vintage, the Confurons are always among the last to harvest. Very few new barrels are used, but the elevages are very long, and they are also amongst the last to bottle. The wines are robust and energetic, ideally built for the long haul. Aging accentuates their floral aromas and bestows a state of grace to their wines. These are grand wines from the “old school” tradition—in the best possible ways.
On a recent visit, our team inquired about the location of a lieu-dit called Les Treux, the source for most of the grapes used in their grand cru Échézeaux. Often criticized by “experts,” Yves took us for a walk in the vineyards of Vosne-Romanée. A quick visual survey was enough to reveal that the Échézeaux of Confuron-Cotetidot lie precisely at the intersection of Clos Vougeot, Grands Échézeaux and Échézeaux. It is indeed an exceptional vineyard which is proven in the consistent quality of the wine.

Dugat-Py is run by Bernard, Jocelyne and their son Loïc, a three-pronged powerhouse of action and vision.

Their approach could be compared to the art of crafting fine silverware. Every single step of the winemaking process is studied and executed rigorously. Such a search for perfection is unrivalled anywhere in Burgundy. Disciplined labor in the vines, which has been farmed organically since 2003, is job number one at Dugat-Py. They just don’t say it, they believe in their heart that a great wine starts with exceptional grapes. They assure that their old vines produce grapes that are perfectly ripe, so it should come as no surprise that they use a high proportion of whole clusters in their vinfication.
All their wines are an extraordinary marriage of power and finesse, with by a sensual texture. More than most, Dugat-Py’s wines are built for the long haul, made by uncompromising artisans who fully honour their convictions. It’s imperative to let bottles age for at least several years so they can begin to reveal their potential. We truly believe that Domaine Dugat-Py is the summit of Burgundy.

At le Maitre de Chai, we look for vignerons who show both exceptional talent as well as the quality vineyards, especially when it comes to Burgundy.

Christian Amiot has both: the skills and know-how of a talented winemaker, as well as vineyards spread over crus renowned for yielding wines of an unparalleled quality. Their premiers crus in Chambolle-Musigny Les Amoureuses and Derrière la Grange are truly exceptional. he also farms other premiers cru in Chambolles as well as the grand cru Clos de la Roche—which needs no introduction.

Alongside well-known Burgundian négociants who have been around for decades, there exists a constellation of smaller négociants who are injecting youthful vitality into the region’s commercial panorama.
Oliver Decelle made waves by acquiring and reviving Mas Amiel in Roussillon as well as three properties in Bordeaux: Château Jean-Faure in Saint-Émilion, Haut-Maurac in the Médoc, and Haut-Ballet in Fronsac.
Purchased grapes make their way to the Decelle & Fils cellar in Nuits-Saint-Georges where they are vinified and undergo their élevages. The duo’s aim is to produce 70,000 bottles per year, from appellations throughout the Côte d’Or, Côte Chalonnaise and the Maconnais. They are proving that the negociant business can make wines with the same care and quality as smaller, boutique wineries.