Precise red wines, fruity, fresh and fine. The whites are wines of consistency, density, energy...
NADINE GUBLIN, JANUARY 2023, ON 2021 AT THE DOMAINE
There has been a crane hovering over Domaine Jacques Prieur during our last few visits. Last November, we finally saw the results of a stunning new space for cellarage, entertaining and harvester accommodation.
This building work serves as something of a metaphor for a domaine whose enormous potential is finally being realised, as 15 years of the highest of high standards from owner Édouard Labruyère come to fruition.
The domaine was established in 1868. The vineyard acquisitions were started by Jacques Prieur’s predecessors and continued by Jacques himself, who also went on to co-found the famous Chevaliers du Tastevin in 1934.
The Labruyère family arrived in Meursault, where the domaine is based, in 1988. Their Domaine Labruyère is the oldest estate in Moulin-à-Vent. Building on the extensive holdings of the Prieur family, it was the late Jean-Pierre Labruyère, along with his son Édouard, who set in motion the current trajectory of the domaine.
Technical Director Nadine Gublin was appointed in 1990, since when she has established herself as one of France’s leading winemakers. She has been instrumental in putting the domaine on the map.
Édouard took charge of the family estates in 2008. Beside Domaines Jacques Prieur and Labruyère, he also owns Champagne JM Labruyère in Verzenay and Château Rouget in Pomerol.
We started as the domaine’s exclusive UK agent in the 2013 vintage. Since then, we have seen some small Burgundy crops but none as painfully tiny as 2021. Édouard has done his very best with our allocation but please be aware that disappointment is almost inevitable when it comes to ordering.
GUY SEDDON March 2023The Domaine Jacques Prieur story started on 24th February 1868, with the marriage of 22-year-old Claude Duvergey to 19-year-old Marie Taboureau, both from vigneron families.
Claude Duvergey (1847-1920) m. Marie Taboureau
Henri Prieur m. Hélène Taboureau
Jacques Prieur (1893-1965)
1879: Claude buys a château in Meursault, Les Herbeux, which remains the heart of Domaine Jacques Prieur to this day.
VINEYARD ACQUISITIONS – A BUSY TWO YEARS…
1889: Meursault's Clos de Mazeray Monopole
Volnay Santenots
4.5 hectares of Clos Vougeot
1890: Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Santenots (in its entirety) Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Combettes
Le Montrachet
1891: Claude and Marie are childless. Marie's niece, Hélène Taboureau, marries Henri Prieur from Beaune.
1893: Henri and Hélène’s son Jacques Prieur is born.
MORE VINEYARD ACQUISITIONS…
1895: Musigny
Vineyard swap: Clos Vougeot plot for Chambertin and Clos de Bèze
1907: Chevalier-Montrachet
1920: Claude Duvergey dies on 9th March and bequeathes his estate to Jacques Prieur.
1924: Jacques Prieur and Comte Jules Lafon establish the famous Paulée de Meursault.
1956: Following Jacques’ mother’s death, the estate is renamed Domaine Jacques Prieur.
1965: Jacques Prieur dies, followed in 1974 by his wife, leaving the winery to their six children.
1988: Five French families, including the Labruyère family, acquire the domaine.
1990: Nadine Gublin appointed Technical Director. Grands crus of Corton-Bressandes and Corton-Charlemagne added shortly after.
2008: Arrival at the domaine of Édouard Labruyère.
Chambertin, Clos de Bèze, Musigny, Clos de Vougeot, Échézeaux, Corton-Bressandes, CortonCharlemagne, Chevalier-Montrachet and Montrachet – plus a host of premiers crus traversing Beaune, Volnay and Meursault, where the domaine is located. The domaine’s 21 hectares have been worked organically since 1997 and biodynamically since 2009.
There is a double sorting table, to ensure the grapes are pristine. Red wine maceration lasts around 20 days, consisting of three to five days of cold soak at 14˚C before fermentation, with a post-fermentation maceration of five to seven days, protecting the surface with a cap of carbon dioxide.
Pigeage, or punching-down, is done twice a day for the first three days of fermentation, then once a day thereafter, but with no pumping-over. New oak is around 50-80% for the grands crus and 20-30% for the premiers crus
For the white wines, the grapes are pressed immediately using a pneumatic press and transferred to stainless steel vats for 12-14 hours’ settling. Around 20 months’ élevage is the norm, with 100% malolactic conversion. Since 2007, there has been no bâtonnage (lees stirring).
Only natural yeasts are used. Since 2008, the red and white wines have been made in separate cellars to keep their different natural yeast strains separate.
Winemaker Nadine Gublin chose to destem all of the red wines in 2021.
Domaine Labruyère in Moulin-à-Vent was established in 1850. Édouard Labruyère has run the family’s estates since 2008, when he took over from his late father. The family also owns Château Rouget in Pomerol and Champagne JM Labruyère in Verzenay, Montagne de Reims.
Édouard Labruyère was born in 1976 at the original family domaine in Moulin-à-Vent. Following a short period in the diplomatic service, he returned to the world of wine in 2003, working as a courtier in Bordeaux from 2003 until 2008. He has run the family wine estates since 2008.
Nadine Gublin has been Technical Director at Domaine Jacques Prieur since 1990. After a decade at the domaine, she was named ‘Winemaker of the Year’ by the Revue du Vin de France, the only French woman to have been so recognised.
Daniel Godefroy has been in charge of the vineyards of Domaine Jacques Prieur since 1997. Born into a winemaking family in the Loire’s Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil, he worked in Alsace for twelve years, five of which were spent at Domaine ZindHumbrecht.
Daniel Godefroy
Who could have imagined at the beginning of the year, after a rather mild and wet winter 2020-2021, that the climatic conditions to come would weigh heavily on the development of the vines throughout their cycle and on the final harvest?
After a marked cooling in mid-March, a period of excessive heat at the end of the month and at the very beginning of April (up to 27°C) caused an explosion of vegetative growth and prompted an early budburst, in particular in the Chardonnay and the best-exposed Pinot Noir.
But the unthinkable happened during the nights of 6-8th April with a strong return of winter (snowfall and temperatures down to -8°C). Despite all efforts to minimise the effects, this particular type of advective frost damage (seen on the nights of 5-6th and 6-7th April) was irrevocable for the buds, especially since the cold persisted until the end of April. The losses were significant.
After this shock, the vines took time to come back to life, especially as the month of May was cool, rainy and dull. By contrast, June was spectacular, with a return of the sun and heat, causing the vines to start growing in “an anarchic way”.
Flowering in mid-June (between the 13th and 18th, 50% stage of open flowers) was dazzling. It lasted just one week, too fast, which caused “sagging”, and a further loss of crop.
An “autumnal summer” (July-August), with heavy rainfall and periods of heat, caused unbridled growth of vegetation. Work in the vines was exhausting and disease pressure (mildew and powdery mildew) very high. Vineyard treatments had to be carried out with great precision.
A respite finally arrived in mid-August, as dry and sunny weather set in for a short time, allowing véraison (colour change) to start.
At the end of August and beginning of September, the summer conditions and the north wind brought véraison to an end, along with accelerated ripening and a decrease of botrytis pressure.
Great disparities of maturity were noted between the heavily frozen vines and those less affected by frost. Regular maturity checks and increased vigilance were necessary to accurately determine the start of the harvest.
Picking began at the estate on 17th September with the Pinot Noir and ended on 28th September with the Chardonnay. Apart from the very rainy weekend of 18-19th September, weather conditions during harvest were very good (mild, dry and sunny with a strong easterly wind).
Meticulous and flawless sorting, in particular for the Pinot Noir, guaranteed successful, precise red wines, which are fruity, fresh and fine. The whites are wines of consistency, density, energy, aromatic potential and balance.
“Unimaginable, implausible, unthinkable… are the most appropriate words for 2021.”NADINE GUBLIN, JANUARY 2023
Due to the terrible crop losses to frost in Beaune, just one Beaune 1er Cru cuvée has been made in 2021. It is a blend of the domaine’s three premiers crus, Grèves, Champs Pimont and the monopole, Clos de la Féguine. Soaringly pretty aromas of sappy spices and deft red berries. The palate is medium-weight, ethereal and airy, with yet more joyful sweetly spiced aromas. 25% new oak. Just nine barrels were made, making the average yield here less than 2hl/ha. 12.5% abv.
Corney & Barrow Score 17.5
Recommended drinking from 2024 - 2029
£450/case of 6 bottles, in bond UK
These are the young vines (more than 25 years old) of Chambertin Grand Cru, voluntarily declassified to premier cru status, from all five of the domaine’s parcels in Chambertin and Clos de Bèze. 100% destemmed in 2021. Not tasted – the following is from Édouard Labruyère and Nadine Gublin: “Floral notes (roses, violets). Warm palate with a fresh fruitiness. Structured finish. Silky and tender tannins. Tasted on lees from barrel (not racked).”
Recommended drinking from 2026 - 2036
£895/case of 6 bottles, in bond UK
This DJP monopole is mostly planted to Chardonnay, but there are 0.6 hectares of Pinot Noir in the centre, from which this wine is made. 100% destemmed in 2021. Not tasted – the following is from Édouard Labruyère and Nadine Gublin: “Floral notes, rose petals, small red fruits (cherry). A gourmand palate with very fine tannins. Tasted on lees from barrel (not racked).”
Recommended drinking from 2024 - 2030
£475/case of 6 bottles, in bond UK
This 1.2 hectare plot of vines, 55 years old on average, is in Santenots du Milieu, the central lieu-dit which makes the most powerful examples of Santenots. This is a wine of sweet, exotic spices. The palate’s supple raspberry fruit is shot through with peonies and sappy spices, sustained by taut acidity. Picked on 21st September. Six barrels were made, of which just one was new oak. 13% abv, which was achieved without chaptalisation. As Édouard said, “This was clearly the most enjoyable wine in the cuverie from the beginning.”
Corney & Barrow Score 18
Recommended drinking from 2025 - 2035
£925/case of 6 bottles, in bond UK
On the Ladoix side of the hill of Corton, Pinot Noir on the gently sloping Bressandes tends to ripen early – a useful trait in 2021. Aromas of sweet spices and cloves, enticingly expressive. The palate has a wonderful transparency of fruit, allowing direct access to a sense of what I called ‘warm chalky minerality’. Textured and tactile on the finish. This was picked on 22nd September. Six barrels were made, of which two were new oak.
Corney & Barrow Score 17.5+
Recommended drinking from 2025 - 2032
£1,125/case of 6 bottles, in bond UK
This 0.76 hectare parcel of nearly 50 year old vines is in the southern part of Les Petits Musigny, just above the Clos de Vougeot. Beautifully perfumed, fine red berry aromas rising from the glass – the most recognisably ‘Chambolle’ of Musignys I can recall tasting here at this early stage. The mid-weight palate is more darkly fruited and chalky, with fine, detailed tannins. 13% abv. Just three barrels have been made, of which one is new oak.
Corney & Barrow Score 17.5 - 18
Recommended drinking from 2025 - 2035
£2,595/case of 3 bottles, in bond UK
This 1.28 hectare parcel lies at the heart of the large claybased Clos de Vougeot vineyard, just below the holding of Château de la Tour. Dark and savoury on the nose, with sweet spices. The palate is generous and open, blackberry fruit framed by supple tannins, with juicy acidity and a long, dark-fruited finish which leaves a vapour-trail of Pinot perfume in its wake. Picked on 23rd September. 100% destemmed. 40% new oak.
Corney & Barrow Score 17.5 - 18
Recommended drinking from 2025 - 2035
£1,225/case of 6 bottles, in bond UK
0.4 hectares in the lieu-dit Les Champs Traversin, beside Grands-Échézeaux and perpendicular to the slope, the Combe d’Orveau’s breezes ensuring slow, steady ripening. 1996 was the first vintage – and Nadine says there has never been a weak year! 100% destemmed in 2021. Not tasted – the following is from Édouard Labruyère and Nadine Gublin: “Juicy and fresh fruit. Energetic, tasty palate. Dense, fine and well-defined tannins.”
Recommended drinking from 2028 - 2040
£1,745/case of 3 bottles, in bond UK
Domaine Jacques Prieur has parcels in both Chambertin and Chambertin-Clos de Bèze, totalling less than a hectare. The latter was replanted in 2021, so production will be even smaller than usual for several years now. The vines are 46 years old on average. Not tasted in 2021 – the drinking range below is an estimate based on previous vintages.
Recommended drinking from 2026 - 2036+
£1,675/case of 3 bottles, in bond UK
Our tasting notes provide full details but, at your request, we have also introduced a clear and simple marking system. We hope these guidelines assist you in your selection.
Wines are scored out of 20. Customers seem to like it and it has the benefit of simplicity.
We will often use a range of scores (e.g. 16.5 to 17) to indicate the potential to achieve a higher mark. When a ‘+’ is shown it adds further to that potential. Wines from lesser vintages will, inevitably, show a lower overall score.
Wines are judged, in a very broad sense, against their peers. Why? Well, you cannot easily compare a Ford with an Aston Martin, other than they are both cars and have wheels. It is not that different with wine.
A score is a summary only. The devil is in the detail, so please focus on the tasting notes and, as always, speak to our sales team.
These vines, just under a hectare in total, lie beside the domaine in Meursault, opposite Clos de la Barre. In 2021, this blend is “a bit of everything”, in Édouard Labruyère’s words (from which I think we can conclude, there is some very senior fruit here…) Exuberant aromas of ripe white peach, with leesy breadiness. The palate is energetic and densely packed, with peaches and patisserie, enlivened by phenolic crunch and grip. A wine of confidence and flair, punching way above its weight. Just 6.5 barrels, versus the usual 14-16.
Corney & Barrow Score 18
Recommended drinking from 2024 - 2027
£199/case of 6 bottles, in bond UK
These are among the youngest of the domaine’s vines, planted in perhaps the greatest terroir of Beaune. This stony/gravelly half-hectare plot was planted in 2006; the first vintage released was 2009. Not tasted – the following is from Édouard Labruyère and Nadine Gublin: “Subtle nose, white flowers, marzipan. Structured palate, good density, length and sapidity. Very salty on the finish (aniseed notes). Fermented and aged in 228 litre barrels.”
Recommended drinking from 2023 - 2027
£395/case of 6 bottles, in bond UK
This is a one-off for 2021, due to the tiny volumes. It is a blend of three Beaune 1ers Crus: Champs Pimont (1.4ha, white marl), Clos de la Féguine (a 0.27ha monopole) and Coucherias (0.43ha – 2021 is only the third crop here). White peach and pear fruit, with pithy apple skin and a green citrus flair. Excellent, and a shame it is likely the only time we will see this blend. Just five barrels were made, of which one is new oak. 13% abv.
Corney & Barrow Score 17
Recommended drinking from 2023 - 2027
£345/case of 6 bottles, in bond UK
DJP’s Combettes is made from a 1.49 hectare plot in this most majestic of the Puligny premiers crus. Not tasted – the following is from Édouard Labruyère and Nadine Gublin: “Subtle and racy nose, with fine aniseed and toasted notes, acacia and white flowers. On the palate, tension, energy, chiseled structure, lemony notes. Lingering finish with beautiful salinity. Fermentation and ageing in 228 litre barrels.”
Recommended drinking from 2024 - 2030
£675/case of 6 bottles, in bond UK
The domaine’s only village holding is a special wine – a monopole, in sole ownership. It is almost three hectares in size: a good swathe of Meursault, in the centre of the appellation, just south of the village. Not tasted – the following is from Édouard Labruyère and Nadine Gublin: “On the nose, yellow fruits (Mirabelle plum), flinty notes. Crystalline mouth, slightly toasted notes. Energy. Fermentation and ageing partly in Galileo concrete ball and in 228 litre barrels.”
Recommended drinking from 2023 - 2027
£450/case of 6 bottles, in bond UK
The domaine has 0.6 hectares of Montrachet, in two plots, on the Chassagne side. Tasted in November 2022, the week after the malolactic fermentations had finished. A bright green citrussy nose, with apricot and greengage in second file. The palate is both dense and poised, starfruit and mango enhancing the remarkable sense of potency and grippy phenolic swagger. The finish just goes on and on... Two barrels were made, one of which was new oak. Harvested with the highest level of malic acid winemaker Nadine Gublin has ever seen in Montrachet. 13% abv.
Corney & Barrow Score 18.5 - 19
Recommended drinking from 2026 - 2040
£2,850/case of 3 bottles, in bond UK
This is a 0.8 hectare site, next to Domaine Marquis d’Angerville’s plot. The domaine’s Santenots holdings were replanted from Pinot Noir to Chardonnay in the 1990s. The first white wine vintage was 2000. Limestone mineral tension is what I hope to find here… Not tasted – the following is from Édouard Labruyère and Nadine Gublin: “A spicy, aniseed now, with slightly toasted firestone notes. Lots of freshness and energy on the palate. Nice sapidity (salinity), a lot of strength on the finish. Fermentation and ageing in 228 litre barrels.”
Recommended drinking from 2024 - 2030
£545/case of 6 bottles, in bond UK
Corton-Charlemagne sits apart, both geographically (north of Beaune, on the Hill of Corton) and stylistically (linear, luminous and stony). DJP’s vines, in one parcel, are on the mineral-rich white marl soils of the high slopes, on the eastern side of the hill. This is a late ripening site and in 2021 was the last to be picked, on 28th September. Flinty and citric on the entry, broadening on the midpalate, whilst retaining a fabulous line of nervy, chalky minerality and a steely acid backbone. Two barrels were made, of which one was new oak. 13% abv.
Corney & Barrow Score 18
Recommended drinking from 2025 - 2032
£1,095/case of 3 bottles, in bond UK
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