Domaine Dugat-Py: ‘impressive’ freshness is the key to the 2023 vintage
The 2023 vintage – despite a succession of heatwaves and unsettled weather followed by rapid ripening of the grapes – has been characterised by great freshness, according to Loïc Dugat of legendary Gevrey-Chambertin estate, Domaine Dugat-Py. Arabella Mileham reports. The post Domaine Dugat-Py: ‘impressive’ freshness is the key to the 2023 vintage appeared first on The Drinks Business.
The 2023 vintage – despite a succession of heatwaves and unsettled weather followed by rapid ripening of the grapes – has been characterised by great freshness, according to Loïc Dugat of legendary Gevrey-Chambertin estate, Domaine Dugat-Py. Arabella Mileham reports.
Among the most revered names in Gevrey-Chambertin, Domaine Dugat-Py dates back to the 17th century, with Loïc Dugat representing the thirteenth generation at the estate. He took over the management and winemaking at the domaine from his father in 2014 alongside his wife Marie-Amélie, however it was 2016 that proved the “turning point”, the year that Loïc took over the ownership of the property and started to change the wines stylistically.
The changes, he notes, moved the domaine towards a greater expression of terroir through detail-focused viticulture and more sensitive cellar management.
The 15-hectare domaine, which includes four of the great grands crus of the village — Chambertin, Mazis-Chambertin, Charmes-Chambertin and Mazoyères-Chambertin – comprise a treasure trove of old vines, with an average age of 70 years, although one parcel dates back further still, to 1910.
Old vines are part of the domaine’s DNA, Loïc explains – but it is a constant balancing act to capture the purity of the fruit while also maintaining the concentration.
Speaking at a recent tasting at the domaine’s UK importer Corney & Barrow, Dugat said that the challenge this year was ensuring picking at the right date – particularly as the 2023 growing season was was unusual in that it needed two green harvest to restrain the vines' vigour.
“As we have old vines, we don’t normally need to do this, but as it was such an abundant year that we had to do two green harvests to keep the yields down and the concentration up,” Loic explains. “It was therefore very important to pick the right date to maintain the concentration and maintain balance as we had very few grapes due to the green harvest.”
And this, the team seems to have done. As Guy Seddon, head of fine wine buying at Corney & Barrow noted, “The one thing that strikes me is that you don’t normally ascribe freshness to a season like the ’23. But the more we taste the ‘23, the more we see that how the character is represented - to keep that freshness is impressive.
“In a warm vintage, you can often find that the heat masks the terroir, but that is not the case in the 2023, you can see the terroir and the fruit is very pure,” Loic agreed.
The team worked meticulously to get the vintage into the winery in time – usually it employs a team of around 30-40 pickers, but the 2023 saw 60-70 people picking in order to ensure the perfect timing.
Expansion
Since taking over, Loïc has expanded adding a new parcel in the Hautes-Cotes de Nuit in 2018, a number of plots formerly managed by Domaine Newman in 2019 (Beaune Les Beaux Fougets, Beane 1er Cru Clos des Avaux, Beaune 1er Cru Les Grèves, Pommard La Levrière, Pommard Les Vaumuriens – Haut and Monthélie, which were converted to organic), and two more (Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Champ Gain and Aloxe-Corton Les Paulands) in 2022.
He has also made big changes in the vineyard – notably the conversion to certified organic of all the new properties (the team has been working organically since 2003 –the old vines adapted extremely well to the conversion) but also in terms of the trellising. In 2018, for example he changed the trellising of the Grand Cru and Premier vineyards to 2.2m high with six wire, allowing him to tressage or arch the vines together along the top wire. The benefit of this technique - which involves rolling the tips of the vine and tucking them back around each other rather than topping them - is to avoid stressing the plant (reducing damage to the vine is thought to produce a less tannic, more thirst-quenching wines). By keeping the growing tip (the apex), it also naturally inhibit the growth of lateral, side shooting buds and reduces the compaction of the cluster.
And everything is still done by hand across the vineyard “It is all about the respect for vineyard and nature,” Loïc says.
White wine
Historically, Dugat-Py has concentrated more on the reds than the whites, but in 2003, the family brought white wine back to the domaine –with a Mersault in 2003, a Chassagne-Montrachet in 2004, and Corton-Charlemagne and Pernand-Vergelesses in 2011. “We took great pleasure to add an expression in white to the range,” Loïc said.
It was, however “very complex”, he notes. “It is like having two different jobs, from the elevage, the winemaking, the vinification – it is very different.” However it was also an opportunity to start “with a blank page” and develop its own style in terms of the white.
Nowadays, the domaine’s whites make up around 30% of production, “the right balance”, Loïc says, although he has his eye on two new plots
Like the reds, the whites are picked early to “capture their energy and freshness” - in 2023 this took place on 1-3 September - and are long-aged in barrel.
“It is a balancing act to capture the purity while having that concentration – sometimes if you only have the purity only [the wine] can be thin but if you have the concentration and the balance, it is an impressive wine."
Picking comes down to three main factor – analysis of the grapes in the laboratory, tasting in the vineyards, and looking at the vines and “getting that feeling that they are ready to be harvested”, Dugat explains. “There is a moment where they reach their peak and after that it starts to down, so finding that perfect moment when it is at the peak is important. There aren’t any rules, it’s about walking in the vineyard and having that feeling”
The vineyards are certified organic and Loïc works follows biodynamic preparations, determined by the lunar cycle. The domaine produces 37 wines and, according to critic William Kelly, its bottles “number among the finest that contemporary Burgundy has to offer”.
Among the most revered names in Gevrey-Chambertin, Domaine Dugat-Py dates back to the 17th century, with Loïc Dugat representing the thirteenth generation at the estate. He took over the management and winemaking at the domaine from his father in 2014 alongside his wife Marie-Amélie, however it was 2016 that proved the “turning point”, the year that Loïc took over the ownership of the property and started to change the wines stylistically.
The changes, he notes, moved the domaine towards a greater expression of terroir through detail-focused viticulture and more sensitive cellar management.
The 15-hectare domaine, which includes four of the great grands crus of the village — Chambertin, Mazis-Chambertin, Charmes-Chambertin and Mazoyères-Chambertin – comprise a treasure trove of old vines, with an average age of 70 years, although one parcel dates back further still, to 1910.
Old vines are part of the domaine’s DNA, Loïc explains – but it is a constant balancing act to capture the purity of the fruit while also maintaining the concentration.
Speaking at a recent tasting at the domaine’s UK importer Corney & Barrow, Dugat said that the challenge this year was ensuring picking at the right date – particularly as the 2023 growing season was was unusual in that it needed two green harvest to restrain the vines' vigour.
“As we have old vines, we don’t normally need to do this, but as it was such an abundant year that we had to do two green harvests to keep the yields down and the concentration up,” Loic explains. “It was therefore very important to pick the right date to maintain the concentration and maintain balance as we had very few grapes due to the green harvest.”
And this, the team seems to have done. As Guy Seddon, head of fine wine buying at Corney & Barrow noted, “The one thing that strikes me is that you don’t normally ascribe freshness to a season like the ’23. But the more we taste the ‘23, the more we see that how the character is represented - to keep that freshness is impressive.
“In a warm vintage, you can often find that the heat masks the terroir, but that is not the case in the 2023, you can see the terroir and the fruit is very pure,” Loic agreed.
The team worked meticulously to get the vintage into the winery in time – usually it employs a team of around 30-40 pickers, but the 2023 saw 60-70 people picking in order to ensure the perfect timing.
Expansion
Since taking over, Loïc has expanded adding a new parcel in the Hautes-Cotes de Nuit in 2018, a number of plots formerly managed by Domaine Newman in 2019 (Beaune Les Beaux Fougets, Beane 1er Cru Clos des Avaux, Beaune 1er Cru Les Grèves, Pommard La Levrière, Pommard Les Vaumuriens – Haut and Monthélie, which were converted to organic), and two more (Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Champ Gain and Aloxe-Corton Les Paulands) in 2022.
He has also made big changes in the vineyard – notably the conversion to certified organic of all the new properties (the team has been working organically since 2003 –the old vines adapted extremely well to the conversion) but also in terms of the trellising. In 2018, for example he changed the trellising of the Grand Cru and Premier vineyards to 2.2m high with six wire, allowing him to tressage or arch the vines together along the top wire. The benefit of this technique - which involves rolling the tips of the vine and tucking them back around each other rather than topping them - is to avoid stressing the plant (reducing damage to the vine is thought to produce a less tannic, more thirst-quenching wines). By keeping the growing tip (the apex), it also naturally inhibit the growth of lateral, side shooting buds and reduces the compaction of the cluster.
And everything is still done by hand across the vineyard “It is all about the respect for vineyard and nature,” Loïc says.
White wine
Historically, Dugat-Py has concentrated more on the reds than the whites, but in 2003, the family brought white wine back to the domaine –with a Mersault in 2003, a Chassagne-Montrachet in 2004, and Corton-Charlemagne and Pernand-Vergelesses in 2011. “We took great pleasure to add an expression in white to the range,” Loïc said.
It was, however “very complex”, he notes. “It is like having two different jobs, from the elevage, the winemaking, the vinification – it is very different.” However it was also an opportunity to start “with a blank page” and develop its own style in terms of the white.
Nowadays, the domaine’s whites make up around 30% of production, “the right balance”, Loïc says, although he has his eye on two new plots
Like the reds, the whites are picked early to “capture their energy and freshness” - in 2023 this took place on 1-3 September - and are long-aged in barrel.
“It is a balancing act to capture the purity while having that concentration – sometimes if you only have the purity only [the wine] can be thin but if you have the concentration and the balance, it is an impressive wine."
Picking comes down to three main factor – analysis of the grapes in the laboratory, tasting in the vineyards, and looking at the vines and “getting that feeling that they are ready to be harvested”, Dugat explains. “There is a moment where they reach their peak and after that it starts to down, so finding that perfect moment when it is at the peak is important. There aren’t any rules, it’s about walking in the vineyard and having that feeling”
The vineyards are certified organic and Loïc works follows biodynamic preparations, determined by the lunar cycle. The domaine produces 37 wines and, according to critic William Kelly, its bottles “number among the finest that contemporary Burgundy has to offer”.
