Burgundy: changing places. .

Onward and upward is a good theme. The last few months have seen some changes. Of course Burgundy changes seamlessly most of the timeDomaines are born or disappear as their owners do.

New hyphenated names appear just when you are not looking. What has been one domaine for hundreds of years can be divided by siblings. The tax man has to be paid so vineyards are sold off. New domaines are born, others are strengthened. With the wines achieving such fame and unheard of prices a  leading domaine can change hands of excruciating sums of money partly because the majority do not come on the market but just stay within families. But the increasing price of the land means that a livelihood that is sometimes precarious, as we have seen all to often in recent years, produces for many an income that bears little relation to the value of the property. That cannot be a good thing. Sooner or later even the successful estates come onto the market if there are problems of succession and the region suffers a small tremor as new forces are felt.

Even when a succession is secure we still lose great winemakers. But we all have our allotted span…

For these reasons there have been new faces appearing at familiar addresses over the past year.

It seems  like quite a shake up but Burgundy with its long history has a way of just continuing in its usual way. Some people worry new people will change Burgundy’s direction but that direction is controlled not so much by people as its history and its nature. Wine makers throughout Burgundy know that they do not control their lives. Their terroir does.

Chardonnay in Pommard..?! Monsieur Cachat says “Why not, this is Beaune !”

Meanwhile Denis Berthault in Fixin has handed over to daughter Amelie but is still helping out a bit.

Thierry Brouin is saying goodbye at Clos Des Lambrays after 37 years.

Thierry will stay on while Boris Champy late of Louis Latour settles in

And this “ecusson” will be coming down under new owners.

Sylvain Pitiot too has retired, I shall miss his patience, smile, craggy face, piercing eyes and those glasses

New man Jacques Devauges comes all the way from Domaine de L’Arlot

This memorial in Domaine Leflaive’s Bâtard Montrachet marks Anne-Claude’s sad passing.

Brice de la Morandiere is in charge now.

So there are developments and new investments.

But the ethos remains the same.

So these promotional thermometers are a rarity but speak of times past. The girl in the vineyard look as if the pay was pretty good and the work easier !

As do the windows in the former cuverie at Close de Vougeot.

Elsewhere things go on as usual as Franck Grux, Olivier Leflaive and Jean Soubeyrand pose in the shade of a Puligny roundabout.

Jerome Flous and Erwan Faiveley show me round the Faiveley cellars in Suits St Georges.

The tourists make the most of June sunshine.

And Pierre Duroché of Gevrey-Chambertin indulges in some evening climbing above Chambolle-Musigny.

Plus ça change…..