Red wines, it's time for consensus!

Find below the continuation of the articles published in the "25 years in Burgundy" section of our issue 149.

In the mid-1990s, a fierce debate raged between proponents of "modern" winemaking techniques aimed at producing rich, deeply colored red wines, and advocates of a "classic" approach, focused on finesse and balance. All that is now a distant memory, and perhaps a consensus has emerged, as demonstrated by the debate between Domaine Gouges and Domaine Lécheneaut in Nuits-Saint-Georges. The first half took place in 2002 (Bourgogne Aujourd'hui, issue no. 45). Here is the end of the match!

Gouges and Léchenaut are now among the reference areas in Côte de Nuits But the similarity ends there. Their very different stories demonstrate how the search for a "style" can be influenced by multiple and varied factors.

In the mid-1980s, Philippe and Vincent Lécheneaut took over from their father, who until then had sold almost all of his production in bulk to wine merchants, in a very specific context: the development of estate bottling and the trend for modern wines; a trend that resonated all the more strongly in Nuits-Saint-Georges because the laboratory of Guy Accad, the "father" of modern wines, was located in the town. "We had clearly seen the excesses of productivism in the 1970s and 1980s. Our objective was to launch estate bottling while creating a clientele from scratch; it seemed obvious to us that these modern wines, rich, colorful, which broke with the past, which had a good reputation, were the way forward; "And then luck was on our side with the wonderful trilogy of vintages 1988, 1989, and 1990, which allowed us to make well-balanced, modern wines from ripe and healthy grapes," explains Vincent. It's clear, then, that this is a context that goes far beyond the scope of... domaine A family tradition that led the Lécheneaut brothers towards modern oenology, from which they have been able to extract the best, knowing where not to go. "The Accad Method* was a shock. Even if his technique was excessive, Guy Accad had the merit of raising awareness of what was wrong in Burgundy," adds Philippe Lécheneaut.

At Gouges, the bottling of the production from the vineyards of domaine It was initiated in… 1924 by a near-mythical figure in Burgundy: Henri Gouges. And at the time, "classic" wines were made from whatever nature provided, period! Henri Gouges died in 1968, "in his winery during the harvest," assures Grégory Gouges, who now runs the estate. domaine With his cousin Antoine, the "classic" Gouges style had ample time to take root; subsequent generations restored the vineyard, modernized the equipment and facilities, while maintaining the same technical foundations, favoring a form of minimalism in the winery. "As far as we're concerned, this modern period didn't last very long, since from the early 2000s, we prioritized working the soil, while adopting a much gentler approach in the winery," comments Philippe Lécheneaut. "It all comes back to what Henri Gouges said: wine is made in the vineyard and never in the winery," continues Grégory Gouges. "I think we can all agree that if we've explored the possibilities of winemaking to some extent..." question In oenology, this is far from being the case in agronomy where a huge amount of work remains to be done in the vineyards. After the modern-classical "war" of the 1990s, the time has now come in Burgundy for consensus… at least as far as red wines are concerned.

Texts: Christophe Tupinier

*Method schematically based on the addition of massive doses of SO2 to cold harvested grapes in order to promote a significant extraction of color and matter even before the start of alcoholic fermentations.

The tasting

1993

Nights premier cru Les Chaignots (Gouges) Nights premier cru The Quails (Lécheneaut)

Both estates destemmed their grapes, but in a challenging vintage with ripeness far from today's standards. Modern techniques, focused on significant extraction during harvest, now produce a beautiful wine that is distinctly more colored and structured at Lécheneaut, but also firmer and more tannic. Chaignots is well-balanced, silky, almost luscious. Both styles are still clearly evident in the glass nearly twenty-five years later.

1995

Nights villages (Gouges) Nights premier cru The Quails (Lécheneaut)

The "comparison" is all the more delicate as it concerns here a premier cru and one villages But if we focus on the notion of style, the difference is less pronounced than in 1993. The Cailles has an intense color, with aromas of blackberry jam, tobacco, and spices. The wine is structured, yet well-rounded by the fruit. The Gouges style is clearly present, with tannins that are now integrated, soft, and refined, resulting in good balance. "The modern style was still dependent on ripeness. Our 1995 is far superior to the 1993, which is a bit cold," Vincent Lécheneaut rightly observes. "It was also dependent on yields; however, we quickly realized that you can't make great red wines with 60 hectoliters per hectare," adds his brother.

1998

Nights premier cru The Blackthorns (Gouges) Nights premier cru The Quails (Lécheneaut)

One of the unexpected consequences of this tasting was that we were able to taste two 1998s at a level we hadn't anticipated. "Parker hadn't even wanted to taste the vintage; he thought it was bad," Vincent Lécheneaut says with a smile in retrospect. At Gouges, they remained true to their principles, while at Lécheneaut, they were starting to significantly reduce the number of punch-downs, "and they were sorting better, which was important in 1998," Vincent adds. The result is two magnificent bottles. Aromas of cherry jam and spices, a velvety, silky, balanced texture for the Cailles, and a similar style for a rich, silky, and elegant Pruliers. Where does the modern end and the classic end end? "I think that as long as the technique respects the terroir..."

Christophe TUPINIER

Publishing Director