Domaine Dujac Morey Saint Denis 1er Cru Rouge 2021
Jacques Seysses started Domaine Dujac in 1968. He was not born in Burgundy, but winemaking is his true vocation. His love for wine comes from his father, a gourmet with a passion for fine wines. Even as a young boy, Jacques would meet the greatest winegrowers of the time in the company of his father. At the age of 25, after a few years working for the family-owned biscuit manufacturing company, he decided to move on from the business world. During the 1966 and 1967 harvests, he learned winemaking with Gérard Potel at the Domaine de la Pousse d'Or in Volnay. In 1968, he bought the Domaine Graillet in Morey-Saint-Denis, which he renamed Domaine Dujac (a pun on his first name, meaning the Estate that Jacques owns). In 1973, he married Rosalind, who quickly became a key member of the team.
Domaine Dujac in Burgundy was acquired by Jacques Seysses in 1967. The domaine in Morey-St-Denis had 4 hectares of vineyards and he has subsequently built it up to 11.5 hectares. Domaine Dujac now includes holdings in Clos de la Roche, Clos St-Denis, Bonnes-Mares, Echézeaux and Charmes-Chambertin . "Use knowledge and technology to counter accidents - for example, bad weather - but, if all is going well, don't interfere," says Seysses and this principle guides much of what happens in the vineyards and the cellars. Dujac wines are neither filtered nor fined and all of his premiers and grands crus are aged in 100% new oak. These are wines of the very highest order.
The first vintage, 1968, was one of the worst years on record so the wines were sold off in bulk, but 1969 was an entirely different matter, putting the domaine firmly on the map. In 1973 Jacques married Rosalind Boswell, a Californian girl who came to work the vintage and stayed for life. The first two of their three children, Jeremy (born 1975), Alec (1977) and Paul (1980) are now involved in the business, as is Jeremy’s wife Diana, also Californian, and a trained oenologist. In 2000 Jeremy Seysses also inaugurated, with his father, a small scale negociant business known as Dujac Fils et Père. The domaine has expanded over the years as additional parcels of vineyard became available, culminating in the acquisition of some exceptional vineyards from Domaine Thomas-Moillard in 2005. In 1987 the domaine moved to lutte raisonée, the reasoned application of treatments, and from 2001 to organic farming. Today 75% of the domaine, including all premier and grand cru vineyards, is farmed organically with experiments also along biodynamic lines.
Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru comes from the following lieu-dit - Les Millandes, Les Charrières, Les Ruchots and Les Sorbès all surround the village of Morey-Saint-Denis. These undulating sites sit around 266-270m above sea level with a vast diversity of limestone, clay, sand. Les Ruchots is perhaps the most fascinating with its rich in flint-like chert nodules (chailles). In the western part, the reddish-brown soil contains ochre-coloured limestone fragments, rich in rounded grains, and debris from ancient marine organisms.
As for the winemaking Jacques Seysses is a leading advocate of including stems in the fermentation process, as much so as to avoid bruising the grapes during the de-stemming process as for a desire to include the stems themselves. However each vintage is treated according to its merits and the ripeness of the stems. The cellars in Morey St Denis have been extended in recent years to improve cellaring conditions. The barrels can now be kept at a cooler ambient temperature, enabling the malolactic fermentation to happen later and for the wines to be racked less frequently.
A cuvée that's often the insiders' choice chez Dujac, the 2021 Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru has turned out well, mingling aromas of plums and berries with hints of baking spice and orange rind. Medium to full-bodied, ample and fleshy, it's layered and textural, with sweet tannins, lively acids and a perfumed finish. - William Kelley, The Wine Advocate.
The 2021 Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru is a blend of Les Charrières, Les Millandes, Les Ruchots and Clos Sorbé picked on 27 and 28 September. This has a well-defined bouquet, the stems perhaps less noticeable compared to the Morey Village. The palate is medium-bodied with fine depth, quite tensile with finer tannins than the Village, though oddly, I find more personality on the Village at this stage. - Atonio Galloni.
Nose - Dark Berries, Orange Rind, Baking Chocolate
Brightly perfumed, dark forest berries, and sweet baking spices.
Palate - Fine Depth, Tense, Brooding
Medium to full, generous and fleshy, it's layered and textural, lively acids and a perfumed finish.
Finish - Fine, Long, Lifted
Tannins are sweet, building but fine, a rose inflected finish.
The Finer Details
Style - Red Wine
Varietal - Pinot Noir
Country - France
Region - Burgundy
Vintage - 2021
Bottle Size - 750ml
ABV - 13.5%