Wine & Spirits - Winter 2017 - 60

Jean-Pierre
Confuron

Domaine Chanson

TOP 100 WINERIES 2017

This historic négociant firm, having modernized its infrastructure and converted to organic farming, has excelled in two difficult back-to-back vintages.
The Fortress: Domaine Chanson is one of the oldest houses in Burgundy, and one of the few that includes a fortress within its domaine.
The thick stone walls of their bastion were constructed under François I in 1520 with defensive purposes in mind. Two centuries later,
with the development of trade under Louis XIV, Simon Verry, a wine
merchant in Burgundy, asked the government if he could use the bastion for wine storage and he was granted permission. In 1794 Simon
Verry's widow purchased the bastion from the government, and fifty
years later the Verry family sold their estate to Alexis Chanson, who
had been with the firm for four decades. Domaine Chanson added
two levels to the bastion in the mid-19th century, and it is these two
top floors where present winemaker Jean-Pierre Confuron ages the
Chanson wines in barrel. The massive stone walls maintain a steady,
cool temperature year round no matter the outside conditions.
The Champenois: The most recent power change at Chanson occurred
in 1999 when the Société Jacques Bollinger (the family-held company that owns Bollinger, Champagne Ayala, Domaine Chanson and
Langlois-Château) assumed ownership. They brought on Confuron,
a consulting oenologist who focuses his farming and winemaking
methods on organic principles. In 2000 Confuron stopped all use of
herbicides in an effort to coax out more personality from the wines.
The new team has stopped buying finished wine, and purchases fruit only from growers whose farming practices
align with theirs. It has taken the house at least a decade
to shift course, and the most recent releases display their
new approach in the wines' saturation, complexity and
deep intensity.
Two Short Vintages:
Vintages It's no secret that 2013 and 2014
were difficult vintages in Burgundy. 2013 was not only
chilly and wet for much of the growing season, there

was a powerful hailstorm on July 23 that decimated vineyards, including all of Chanson's 11 acres of Beaune Clos des Mouches. Using the
cool weather to their benefit, Chanson waited for their grapes to
mature into racy acidity and made tangy, limestone-driven, grand
wines. Their 2013 Corton Vergennes attests to that with focus and
pure, mouthwatering freshness. In 2014, Domaine Chanson was
able to produce charming whites despite the schizophrenic summer
weather. Maturation had proceeded slowly due to wet, chilly conditions in July and the first half of August, interspersed with a handful of hot days. The weather didn't improve until the latter half of
August, continuing through a bright, sunny and breezy September.
The 2014 Corton Vergennes mirrors the Indian summer as a potent,
concentrated and energized white. The Chassagne-Montrachet 1er
Cru Chenevottes comes from a five-acre parcel purchased by Chanson in 2006, located just a stone's throw from Le Montrachet. The
2014 is an umami powerhouse laced with scents of white flowers and
sweet and sour citrus.
Looking Forward: Chanson, once known as a négociant pumping out
quantities of wine, is slowly turning toward a reputation for top quality. They are bottling all of their whites, including grands crus, under
Diam agglomerated corks as of the 2013 vintage to combat premature oxidation. And Confuron has introduced a new device he claims
is unique to Chanson, one he put to use with the 2014 vintage. It's
a conveyor enclosed in stainless steel that leads the grape clusters
through a tunnel where they spend about two minutes in a mist of
nitrogen gas. The temperature of the nitrogen is -292°F, the cold
intended to kill bacteria and bring the internal temperature of the
berries down to 46°F. It's a frigid preamble for the grapes' eight-day,
whole-cluster cold soak. Confuron's goal is to encourage a longer primary fermentation and to retain the fresh and juicy character of the
grapes. He believes that chilling the clusters before a long cold soak
improves texture, freshness and aromas, and he hopes it will create a
basis for the wine to continue to improve at every stage of its life.
-S.L.

DETAILS & TOP WINES
Founded: 1750 * Winemaker/viticulturist: Jean-Pierre
Confuron * Owners: The Bollinger family; Vincent Avenel
Acres owned: 111 * Annual production: 90,000 cases
Estate grown: 20% * Importer: Vintus, Pleasantville, NY
Website: domaine-chanson.com

95 2014 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Chenevottes $127 (4/17)
95 2014 Corton Vergennes Grand Cru $200 (4/17)
93 2013 Corton Vergennes Grand Cru $200 (4/17)

F RANCE B URGUNDY
60

WINE & SPIRITS

BUYING GUIDE 2018

http://www.domaine-chanson.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - Winter 2017