| Feature |
Les Domaines Familiaux de Tradition: |
| Part 1: Who are they and what do they stand for? |
| Part 2: Tradition |
| Part 3: Family |
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| Association Les Domaines Familiaux de Tradition |
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| Established |
1989 |
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| Founder members: |
Domaines Germain, Grivot, Comtes Lafon, Leflaive, Méo-Camuzet and Georges Roumier. |
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| Roll call of the rest |
Domaines Marquis d'Angerville, Simon Bize, Bonneau du Martray, Chandon de Briailles, Bruno Clair, Joseph Drouhin, Dujac, Faiveley, Michel Gaunoux, Henri Gouges, Labet-Dechelette, Lafarge, Hubert de Montille, Pierre Morey, Frédérick Mugnier, Raveneau, Armand Rousseau, Senard, Suremain, Tollot-Beaut, Trapet, A.& P. de Villaine. |
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Part 1: Who are they and what do they stand for? |
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"A great domaine," says Aubert de Villaine of DRC, "is a philosophy first." In conversations with most members of the Domaines Familiaux de Tradition (DFT) it quickly became clear they share a common philosophy of high quality together with a keen respect for terroir and tradition. |
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| You could be forgiven for wondering why, in a region famous for its small family properties and firm traditions, a handful of top quality producers thought it necessary to emphasise these points. "We wanted to reassure people," explains Veronique Drouhin, "that as everything is getting larger in the wine world, we are family owned domaines with a tradition of high quality ...like slow food versus MacDonald's.' Her experience in the New World makes her objective. "Burgundy lovers appreciate the fact that the region has traditions such as appellation contrôlée, whereas in the in the new world wine is often made under a name and the exact origin of the grapes can change." This group recognises that to retain their market following they must eschew fashion and maintain their identity. De Vilette eloquently expresses the sentiment of many. "If we want to continue having great wine which is distinctive from other parts of the world, we have to maintain a more traditional approach, particularly in the cellar, and not be driven by the market to excessive extraction and use of wood which masks the identity of the wine." |
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| In the beginning |
| Putting aside these high ideals for a moment, the group was actually formed to brainstorm a fiscal matter...the succession problem. How could they pass on their domaines to future generations without incurring crippling taxes? The experiences of the ten founding members were better than one, and outside expertise was brought in to advise. As their numbers grew their meetings quickly developed into a forum to exchange ideas and experiences on topics including organic viticulture. Biodynamics is currently top of the agenda. The DFT meet as often as possible to taste each other's wine and, as a group, host annual trade tastings in Paris and in London in March. Plans are afoot to extend this to New York. |
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| Qualification for joining |
| The estate must be family owned. Only the domaines of Faiverley and Drouhin actually belong to the DFT. Simon Bize, for example, invited Drouhin to join, a decision based on the consistent quality of their wines from the entry level upwards. The feeling is that the DFT should remain a small group, but it could expand to include a representative from each of the villages. Christophe Roumier was keen to emphasise some of these family domaines have several generations of experience behind them given they have bottled their wines for decades - since the twenties and thirties. Others have been bottling for at least a generation. |
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| Tradition |
| Aubert de Villaine explains that underlying the association is the belief that traditions are best maintained by families, "because we are part of what we have. We know what our fathers and their fathers have done. We have the capacity to go through bad times and keep the same philosophy of quality." He explains that since the mid C19th the de Villaine family had times of prosperity, but many more of adversity. "We kept the same philosophy even when it was uneconomic to do so." During and between the world wars, it was the family farms around Vichy which allowed them to pay their workers. |
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| Renaud de Villette of Domaine du Marquis d'Angerville hopes that the group reassures people that, "we continue our tradition... not specifics of vinification per say, but a perspective." So tradition is not old-fashioned? "It's nonsense to see us as old fashioned," retorts Christian Roumier. "We don't refuse evolution or we'd still be making vinegar like the Romans." Many of the group, from the youngest member to the 'aging tigers' have overseas experience and run their estates in a truly contemporary way with excellent hygiene, using modern gentle pumps where necessary, and gases to assist in the reductive handling of whites. |
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| De Villaine emphasises the point that tradition does not mean they keep a 'narrow, closed way' and points out that DRC was the first to use a triage table and the first to experiment with lees. The members are quite prepared to push the boundaries. Sometimes it works, and sometimes not. Philippe Senard trialled barrels of different sizes, but found that he couldn't match the results of the traditional 228 litre barrel. While some traditional methods (for example Anne Claude Leflaive's ploughing) and traditional kit (de Montille's oak cuve), are well adapted to the vineyard conditions of the Côte d'Or and to achieving top quality, it seems that experimenting is very much part of the DFT philosophy, provided, says de Villaine, "that everything new is done with respect to quality and the environment." |
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| Marketing |
| The DTF ideals are very commendable, but to what extent is the group also a marketing exercise that uses the concepts of family and tradition to create a distinction in an increasingly branded wine market? Some members brush the suggestion aside, while others are more forthright. "Exactly," admits Senard. "We have never needed it before." |
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| François de Briailles of Domaine Chandon de Briailles agrees that this aspect of the group is important, if not the primary objective. For example the group noticed that sommeliers were not visiting every domaine, so it was decided to go out and meet them. The Paris tasting in particular has proved an effective way to get to know the trade better. Small family domaines do not have large marketing budgets, points out Michel Lafarge, only as a group can they afford to present themselves in Paris and London, events which have helped underline their specificity. |
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| I wondered if it was difficult for 'relative' newcomers to the region to be accepted into the group. Benoît Germain comments that on the contrary they are a very open minded group. Many have studied viticulture or oenology and completed stages abroad. "The main thing to be accepted is to have the right mind-set, to see quality before commerce." |
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| This marks a significant change in the traditional culture of Burgundy. Post war, recalls Patrick Bize, the mentality was very local. Domaines kept information to themselves, or at best shared it within village boundaries. Bize dates the change from 1976 at which time, Aubert de Villaine and Jacques Seyesses were visiting domaines such as Rousseau taking a small group of young vigneron to taste with them. Barriers were breached and an era of sharing within domaines began. |
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| The wine world in general is a very different place today, a corporate world of international mergers and acquisitions. Within this, the concepts of family and tradition seem reassuringly human-sized. The very name of the group embodies the concept of history and experience in the face of high technology and homogenous styles. Of course the DFT operate above the rough and tumble of the price-fighting wine market, but never the less they balance their ideals with a contemporary and commercial approach. As Philippe Senard expresses it, "We have to defend our style of wine against the New World, and to compete without losing our philosophy." |
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Part 2: Les Domaines Familiaux de Tradition: Tradition |
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I wanted to delve further into the concept and reality of tradition. How do the vigneron define tradition and do they consider Burgundy more or less traditional than other classic regions? I asked them to illustrate how they pursue traditional principals in the vineyard and winery, but also how they consider themselves to be progressive. Are the younger generation challenging traditional practices, and is there a place in poor vintages for more radical techniques such as reverse osmosis? As we have already seen these producers are anything but old-fashioned, so how have they reconciled their traditional values with modern techniques? |
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| So what is tradition? |
| I was given several different definitions of tradition. Frédéric Mugnier's literal interpretation considers tradition to be practices, which are the result of long experiment, a hundred years maybe, during which time something is defined such as the shape, size and thickness of a 'traditional' Burgundy barrel. For Jean-Nicolas Méo, "tradition is more of an 'attitude'... more a respect for tradition, than the literal meaning of following the practices of 10 or 100 years ago." For many of the DFT members tradition is best summed up as experience. |
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| Is Burgundy more or less traditional than other classic regions? |
| Francois de Brialles considers that Burgundy has more faithfully retained its traditions than Bordeaux, the Rhone and Chianti, which he suggests have perhaps more readily adapted their wine to the earlier drinking demands of the market. He reasons that the small landholdings on the Côte d'Or have helped them maintain their approach for they are not fighting each other for market space compared with Bordeaux estates. "We are not concerned if our wine is difficult when young. We tell the customer the wine needs ten years." |
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| Veronique Drouhin views the situation slightly differently. On one hand she considers that Burgundy has "grown up" and there are a group of dynamic leaders pushing forward in terms of innovation, but on the other, generic Burgundy is still quite traditional in a negative way, "a bit old fashioned," and this she argues accounts for the difficulty in selling Bourgogne rouge in the export market. "It is a struggle," she says, "for Drouhin to find good Bourgogne rouge, although growers are beginning to accept they need consultants to improve their wines." |
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| Traditional practices and principles |
| At the heart of the DTF philosophy is the concept of terroir. On a practical level the DFT are preoccupied by the management of the soil, soil health, structure and microbial life. They plough to aerate the soil and to minimize compaction, allowing the vines' roots to go beyond the first 35cm to reach the soil that will ultimately define the specific character of the wine. |
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| Herbicides and pesticides are an anathema and the chemicals generally used are those accepted under organic guidelines (copper, sulphur and so forth for fungal diseases). Aubert de Villaine is among the few vigneron never to use herbicides, even during the bad old days of chemicals from the Sixties to the Eighties. While it is not necessary to be organic or biodynamic to be a member of the DFT many domaines including Lafarge, Lafon, Leflaive and Pierre Morey consider biodymanics the best way to protect the soil and hence to express the terroir. |
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| While some consider this a return to traditional values, others, including Dominique Lafon deem it progressive to think of the environment. "Organic viticulture," he says, "is about the future, a more modern, serious approach, particularly as it is an economically sensible one." Real progress, he believes, lies in using an organic approach in any situation, not just in premier and grand cru vineyards. |
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| To make good wine there is no substitute for putting in long man-hours in the vines. As Jean-Paul Tollot expresses it, "la vigne est mangeuse des hommes." However Méo points out, "that whereas twenty years ago we were at the mercy of nature, today we can adapt things to reach the highest quality in a given vintage." This brings to mind the helicopter used by Anne-Claude Leflaive to dry the grapes in the 1999 vintage. Méo continues, "We have the traditional cépage, the traditional density of 10,000, the traditional vertical canopy management, but the wines are more manipulated in the vineyard than they were twenty years ago, and that's a good thing." |
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| "Manipulation"...one has to admire Méo's bold use of a word so often despised or feared. All viticulture is manipulation to some degree from pruning, to using a helicopter. Drying the vines in the vineyard results in less manipulation in the winery, but generally most Burgundian vignerons feel more comfortable with the concept of low intervention. In the winery their collective approach is "simple and without fuss for the best expression of terroir," in the words of de Villaine. So perhaps tradition means low-intervention? Simon Bize thinks so. He applies the same principles to his vineyards as he does to his body. "If I am sick, I will take only an aspirin, or I will need progressively stronger medicine." This appraoch, he believes, accounts for his enduring good health and that of his vineyard. |
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| Where does tradition end and innovation begin? |
| Lafarge and Bize describe themselves as traditionalist, yet they do not reject technical advances. Both draw attention to the fact that while they have no horses in the vineyard, they do have a pneumatic press in the cuverie. |
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| There are numerous examples of traditional and newer techniques being used in parallel. Many growers have experimented with different pruning techniques. The most traditional may be Guyot, but many including Lafarge and Senard use cordon to devigour. And then there is the triage table. Bize installed his in 2003. "It is difficult to sort in the traditional way in the vineyard. There is much better control in the cuverie." |
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| Naturally no top quality producer would be without temperature control, not just for whites, but in a vintage like 2003 red grapes came in warm and needed to be cooled down to 18 degrees centigrade or so. This allowed them to warm up gradually replicating the 'traditional' few days of cold soak. |
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| Tradition may be perceived as both regional, and domaine specific. The elegance of Domaine d'Angerville is achieved through low intervention and gentle extraction using a technique not strictly traditional for Burgundy. Remontage has been employed for forty years at d'Angerville. Each year the more traditional pigéage is used on a small part of Champans, but Renaud de Vilette considers the tannic structure achieved is less refined. Whereas sedimentation occurs naturally at this domaine after remontage, it is not so predicable after pigéage and using enzymes would be undesirably interventionist. |
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| (Of course this serves to highlight the fact that quality is dependent on how a technique is used, rather than whether it is traditional or not). |
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| Mugnier, who had no family tradition of winemaking and learnt the "traditionally accepted" ways at the Lycée Viticole in Beaune, argues that it is, "necessary to take only the best of tradition. Tradition can be broken and improved. I often do the reverse of what I was taught." He does not inoculate with yeast, preferring a slow start to the fermentation, nor does he rack straight after the malolactic in the 'traditional' way he was taught, but uses the lees as an antioxidant and reduces the sulphur required. While the traditional way to preserve empty barrels was to burn sulphur, he quickly discovered that filling them with water improved the 'taste.' However Mugnier considers better hygiene to be the innovation which has most influenced quality in Burgundy in recent years. While it's arguable if one can describe dirty cellars as traditional, they certainly were traditionally accepted. |
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| One cannot deny that there are both modern and traditional styles of wine within the DTF, but I am sure this is a positive thing. Is it wrong that at Château de Chorey, Benoît Germain changed his father's approach to one which he describes as placing greater emphasis on, "managing the quality of tannins...to drink the wine earlier". I think not. It's a matter of balance. Take Hubert de Montille's wines - fabulously or infamously austere? The mature bottles are sensational, but if you don't have a supply ageing gracefully in your cellar, you might be grateful for Etienne de Montille's adjustments to make the wine a bit more accessible. De Villaine expresses the approach of the DFT on this point. "There's room for both styles. We are not here to promote a particular wine or winemaking style." |
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| What of the more controversial modern approaches, such as concentration techniques? Here, interestingly, the group is split. At one extreme is de Villaine is vehemently against the use of anything that interferes with the expression of the soil and the year. He would like to see them banished from grand and premier cru. However he concedes for Bourgogne rouge, and in certain situations village wine, some techniques might be better than chaptalisation. |
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| No group should be without its radical element to stir things up |
| Jean-Nicolas Méo is young, inquisitive and smart. Of course he should push the boundaries in his quest to achieve high quality in each and every year. Unlike most he considers reverse osmosis useful in poorer vintages as a remedial tool, provided it is used very lightly, which he defines as not above 5%, and it is used on an assemblage not an entire cuvée. He may be more radical than most of the DTF members, but he seems to have an intelligent and informed approach. He experiments with reverse osmosis and the traditional saignée using one or two cuves per vintage to form an educated opinion. |
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| His trials on 1999, 2000 and 2001 delivered results which he found encouraging in 1999 and 2001. While these are clearly not poor vintages it allowed him to draw some conclusions. In 2001 and 2002 reverse osmosis resulted in an added intensity, smoothness and body, while saignée made little difference. |
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| In the ripe 2000 vintage where there was sufficient concentration, more backbone was needed and Méo found saignée worked better. (Saignée, as I am sure most readers are aware, increases tannins by bleeding off some must and thereby intensifying the ratio of skin to juice in the fermentation process). |
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| He sees a place for reverse osmosis in a vintage like 1994 where increased extraction from the skins was not desirable. However he concedes that you cannot make up for a lack of polyphenolic ripeness with concentration...its not a miracle cure. Despite Méo's experiments, or maybe because of them, he is a true member of the DFT. He emphasises the dangers of over concentration, and aims to avoid using both saignée and reverse osmosis. |
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| It seems that stelvin is a step too far for many of the members. Bize considers it just doesn't have the right image. Others believe that wrong closure for 'vin du gard' wines. De Villane who believes cork should be used for all great bottles, is however making a parallel study of stelvin and cork in Bouzeron on a small quantity of Aligoté. This typifies the DTF approach. It is a living group. These vigneron will trial new techniques before they reject them. Veronique Douhin tells me this approach was typical of her father, who would say, "I can only criticise it if I have tried it first". |
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| The individual members are more or less conservative, but Lafon voices the opinion of all. "Tradition must be improved all the time. You learn from the past, but you must build on it to move forward." |
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| How do the DFT reconcile traditional values with modern techniques ? |
| Veronique Drouhin explains the pragmatic approach at Drouhin. They use 'modern' techniques or products only when they need them, and only if they do not change the identity of the wine in terms of terroir and house style. For example, while they prefer to use natural yeast, they would certainly inoculate a stuck fermentation. |
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| Roumier's answer is somewhat more esoteric. "I would like people one day to admire my wines the way I admire those of my grandfather, so I must be careful in the way I evolve the vineyard and the wines. You have the main techniques, but it is always the wine which dictates." |
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| Lafarge's solution is to make his wine in the same philosophy as it was traditionally made. Put simply, to treat it very carefully. He astutely points out that one can employ modern materials, machinery, presses and pumps (although he uses gravity), to more effectively make a 'traditional' wine. |
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| So can tradition hamper progress? |
| "Yes," says, "Senard, but this can be a good thing. Changes in agriculture need time to come to fruition. When you plant, it is for the next sixty to seventy years. You have to be careful with decisions for there are long term consequences." |
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| To what extent do tried and tested innovations become today's traditions? |
| "True," says Lafon. "Along the way we keep what is serious, and that becomes part of tradition. "The triage table has become almost a tradition. Of course one can argue if anything is actually new, be it use of gravity or higher canopies. People are always rediscovering the 'virtuous' past. |
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Part 3: Les Domaines Familiaux de Tradition: Family |
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| There are many advantages to being a family owned domaine, but there are also some inherent drawbacks. I asked members of Les Domaines Familiaux de Tradition to consider their situation. |
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| The upside |
| Patrick Bize unashamedly revels in the positives. "When you wish, you are the boss...a Caesar. I prefer to be the first in this little village, than the second in Rome." |
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| Everybody appreciates the freedom to make decisions in a family owned business, such as choosing to separately vinify the fruit from just 15 ares to make two casks of Sur-les-Grève at Château de Chorey. Benoît Germain draws attention to those decisions which might have negative economic impact in the short term, such as lowing yield and organic viticulture, and could be more difficult to agree upon in another business structure. |
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| Philippe Drouhin, who has experience as both domaine owner and negociant, considers there is no comparison in terms of quality control. As a domaine owner, he considers tighter quality control to be a combination of the daily management of the vines, but also long history and experience of their vineyards. Clos-des-Mouches has been in the family since 1923. |
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| The downside |
| De Briailles draws attention to the physical endurance needed if you are on your own running a domaine, particularly if you are a woman. His mother had a tough time when she arrived from Paris to work the vines, but getting her hands dirty gained her the respect of her neighbouring vigneron. |
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| "You take all the decisions, but also are responsible for the consequences," acknowledges Philippe Senard. When he decided to make Corton Blanc, he consulted his sister who was in agreement, but multi ownership in large families, due to the Napoleonic laws of succession can make decision making more difficult. This can also fragment the property. There are ways around this. In brief it seems that two or three companies are created. The first owns the land, which it rents to a second company who makes the wine, and if there is a negociant element, buys grapes or wine. There may be a third company for sales and marketing. This may have some implications for the tax position. |
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| The punitive inheritance tax is arguably the principal disadvantage of a family owned domaine. Inheritance tax is based on the value of the land on a sliding scale of up to 40%. The price of the land has spiraled becoming totally divorced from the profitability of the vineyard. Take a hectare (although of course land changes hands in Burgundy in multiples of ouvrées, of which there are 24 per hectare) of Chorey Les Beaune. This might be valued at around 600,000 Euros, while a hectare of grand cru in Gevrey-Chambertin could be worth well over 2 million Euros, and perhaps three times that figure. The tax situation has become acute. |
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| Is there tension between the younger and older generations? |
| Jean-Louis Trapet, who was playing with his young son as he answered my questions, described the positive dynamic he has with his father, and the "enthusiasm and pleasure" with which they work together. He told me how important his father was in, "stoking the fires of my ambition to make great wine," and he is still impressed by his father's "serenity in awkward moments where he turns to his memory." |
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| The members of the DFT are from a generation who challenge their forefathers' ways. This is natural for the younger generation says Trapet. "You cannot diminish my father's thirty years of experience, but I am seeking my own goals." He challenged 25 years of early malolactic fermentation when he saw the results of a later MLF in other cellars. In 2001 his chance came. He cooled one cellar, giving the wine more time on the lees, adding richness and body, with the advantage of only one rack and less SO2. Trapet has also begun organic and biodynamic trials in the vineyard. His father was in accord, but wanted someone else to take charge. |
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| While some families may serenely reconcile their differences in approach, in many families conflicts between the generations are a fact of life. Often this exhibits itself in the more empirical approach of the older generation, versus the progressive approach and ambitions of the younger. |
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| Some conflicts are particularly explosive, and are not kept behind domaine doors. The family de Montille welcomed filmmaker Jonathan Nossiter to document heated disputes between Hubert de Montille and his son Etienne, committing them to celluloid and an international audience. Entertaining cinema undoubtedly, but can a domaine flourish under two such strong willed people? Etienne de Montille found a constructive outlet for his ambition and energy in turning around the quality and fortunes of Château de Puligny Montrachet, while back at the ranch Hubert de Montille relinquished control a few years ago, and his son has unsurprisingly made the wine his own. For a family domaine to survive it has to pass down the generations, however hard this might be for the individuals. |
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| The 'feel good' factor |
| "You have an appreciation for the land, when it's yours. It's different from being an employee," says de Briailles. But this is a double-edged sword. The generations of ownership can become quite a pressure, admits Dominique Lafon. "This contact with the land makes our job better...but not easier." |
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These vigneron have a special motivation, a heady cocktail of family duty and passion for the land. Some, like Jean-Paul Tollot of Domaine Tollot-Beaut are very self-effacing. "The most important thing my father taught me was to be modest with your vineyard. You are only part of a chain and you must respect that." However these vigneron are not mere caretakers of the land and I was left with the impression that they are on a mission to evolve their domaines, principally though improving their understanding and expression of the terroir. Lafarge explains that each generation has a responsibility to transmit their knowledge down the generations. "Family is the signature of the wine." |
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It seems that the disadvantages of being family owned are convincingly outweighed by the positives. Lafarge happily acknowledges that, "family, means we can produce the wines we love." |
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| Pinot Noir clones on the Côte d'Or; Use of oak in Chablis; Ploughing |
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