Domaine Lebreuil Savigny-les-Beaune 2017
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Jean-Baptiste Lebreuil aims to produce vividly fruity Savigny-les-Beaune wines with great finesse and soft tannins. Vinification and aging follow classic Burgundian practice as it is understood by today’s quality oriented winemakers. The Pinot Noir grapes are transported to the winery in small plastic crates to protect the integrity of the fruit. After a full de-stemming, the grapes are given a cold maceration at 8 degrees centigrade with daily pumping over, to bring out the color and fruit aromas. The alcoholic fermentation lasts about 10 days, and very little press-wine is used. Lebreuil allows the grapes native yeasts to initiate fermentation. The wines are allowed to settle and clarify in the fermentation tanks and are then it is transferred to barrels where they age for 14-16 months.
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Black cherry and plum flavors are shaded by earth and woodsy underbrush notes in this dense, complex and vibrant red. Balanced, if tipping toward the tannins on the finish. Best from 2021 through 2033.
The Lebreuil family estate in Savigny-les-Beaune dates back to 1935, when present winemaker Jean-Baptiste Lebreuil’s grandparents purchased two hectares of vines. Pierre, Jean-Baptiste’s father, enlarged the estate to seven hectares and acquired a bottling line to ensure that he would be able to bottle the majority of his production. After stages in Bordeaux and abroad, and a degree from the Lycee Viticole in Beaune, Jean-Baptiste joined his father in 1999. The Domaine became known officially as Pierre and J-B Lebreuil in 2001 and was further enlarged to its present size of 9.5 hectares, all based around Savigny-les-Beaune.
Jean-Baptiste Lebreuil quickly made technical improvements in the cellars, installing new equipment to ensure perfect cellar hygiene (“primordial for the realization of great wines” he affirms). In the vineyards, Lebreuil adheres to the lutte raisonnée approach. He prunes intensely to reduce yields and ensure healthy fruit. He uses no herbicides and plows the rows 5 times per year to remove grass and aerate the soils so as to encourage the roots to grow deeper. If the crop is deemed too large, Lebreuil green harvests at the time of veraison. In short, all measures are taken to ensure the harvesting of the finest quality fruit.
Jean-Baptiste Lebreuil aims to produce vividly fruity Savigny-les-Beaune wines with great finesse and soft tannins. Vinification and aging follow classic Burgundian practice as it is understood by today’s quality-oriented winemakers The Pinot Noir grapes are transported to the winery in small plastic crates to protect the integrity of the fruit. After a full de-stemming, the grapes are given a cold maceration at 8 degrees centigrade with daily pumping over, to bring out the color and fruit aromas. The alcoholic fermentation lasts about 10 days, and very little press-wine is used. The wines settle and clarify in the fermentation tanks and are then transferred to barrels for 12-16 months of maturation.
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
Savigny-lès-Beaune is a small village near Beaune that produces delightful red and white wines under its own appellation name. Cut by a river, the vineyards on its southern side have sandy soils that result in charming, floral reds. Premiers Crus vineyards on this side include Les Peuillets, Les Narbantons, Les Rouvrettes and Les Marconnets.
On Savigny’s northern side, bordering Pernand-Vergelles, vineyards are planted on rocky soils and produce juicy and spicy Pinot Noir. The village’s best whites, all made of Chardonnay, are full on the palate and abound in texture, complexity and freshness.