The
1996 vintage marked a milestone in the history of the multi-generation
Belland family estate, with pere Adrien’s retirement. He was succeeded
by his son, Jean-Claude, who had worked alongside his father for many
years, and the estate became known as Domaine Jean-Claude Belland. Ten
years later, the domaine saw another watershed: the arrival of Philippe
Cheron as manager and winemaker in August 2006, just before the start
of the harvest. Philippe’s singular mission is to bring the wines of
the Belland family estate to a level of quality which reflects the
grandeur of their holdings.
The
superb 2007 vintage was the first to fully show then results of the
wide ranging improvements Cheron put in the place. But both the
2005s and 2006s also benefited immensely from improved conditions of
maturation and bottling (the 2005s) as well as harvesting, vinification
and elevage under Philippe’s direction. And more refinement is yet to
come as the vineyards are cellars are further improved in anticipation
of the 2008 harvest and beyond. (Some of Cheron’s innovations are
summarized below.)
The
domaine’s holdings range from Santenay to Chambertin, with a
significant presence in Corton. The three majestic Corton Grands Crus –
Clos de la Vigne au Saint, Greves and Perrieres as well as a prime
parcel of Corton Charlemagne – come from the finest sites on the Corton
hill. What Remington Norman wrote in his 1992 book The Great Domaines of Burgundy
of the Belland estate during Adrian’s era is ever more true
today: “a long-established Domaine making wine of exceptional quality,
apparently still largely unrecognized.”
The Santenay 1er Cru les Gravieres
comes from a vineyard with clay-limestone, gravelly soil. This
microclimate makes for complete ripening, making this one of the most
full bodied and compellingly flavored of all red Burgundy wines. It is
made with a long, 12-day maceration period for maximum extraction of
color and flavor. The wine offers pure, intense fruit and remarkable
complexity. It can age for 5-10 years.
Belland’s
Aloxe Corton, made from 45-year-old vines, can also pass for a grand
cru given its massive quality. The vines are planted on rich soil at
the base of the slope. These factors contribute to its opulence, and,
at times, over ripeness. The skilled hand of Philippe Charon has
“tamed” the Belland Aloxe Corton, and it is now one of the attractive
wines in the line up for near-term enjoyment for its silky, yet rich,
black fruit. J-C Belland is the sole producer of Corton Grand Cru Clos de la Vigne au Saint,
apart from Maison Latour. Belland’s one-half hectare holding is located
mid-slope on the south-facing part of the Corton hill, directly
underneath the Corton-Charlemange vineyards. This situation makes for a
lush textured wine, with ripe, jammy black fruit with notes of leather
and spice. It is Belland’s most immediately gratifying Grand Cru. The Corton Grand Cru Gevres
comes from a one-half hectare parcel of 35-year-old, east-facing vines.
It has great depth of color, shows smoky, black cherry, blackberry and
licorice fruit underpinned by a strong minerality which gives the
Greves structure and drive. It is wine of great depth and a chewy
presence on the palate that can be aged for many years.
Belland owns just 1/3rd of a hectare of Chambertin
with 35-year-old vines. It is a profound wine, combing the elegance of
the terroir with remarkable depth of flavor and length. The dark ruby
color and gorgeous bouquet (berries, cherry liqueur, mint, cinnamon and
a hint of oak) introduce this multi-layered wine. Successive waves of
supple black-cherry and dark plum fruit nuanced by spices and espresso
notes caress the palate and linger on the finish. The Chambertin’s
sense of ripeness suggests that it is enjoyable on release; while this
is indeed true, appreciation of the Chambertin’s full depth requires
5-10 year of cellaring.
The estate’s half-hectare of Puligny-Montrachet
lies in the lieu-dit known as La Rue aux Vaches, just below Les
Pucelles. The vines are 50 years old and are planted on a
limestone-clay soil with a strong presence of white marl. The Puligny
is entirely aged in barrels, of which 33% are new oak. Bottling takes
place after about 12 months; an average of 250 cases is produced
annually. The Belland Puligny is a wine of great finesse, concentration
and raciness.
Belland owns about one third of a hectare of Corton Charlemagne,
in the commune of Aloxe. Their parcel is ideally located, mid-slope on
the south-east facing side. The soil is mostly limestone-marl, with the
presence of many stones. One part of the parcel is 40 years old, the
other 50. The hand-harvested grapes are placed in small cases and
pressed pneumatically as quickly as possible. Fermentation takes place
in oak casks, of which 50% are new. The wine is bottled after
about 12 months of aging. This wine is the “sleeper” of the Belland
cellar: it is expansive and majestic, a classic expression of this
Grand Cru. About 100 cases are produced annually.
The changes Philipe Charon
has brought to the estate are ambitious, well thought-out and far
reaching. Here is a summary of the highlights: The first investments
were made to improve the vinification and aging cellars. All of the
concrete fermentation tanks were moved into one consolidated “parc” so
that Cheron is able to supervise the progress of fermentation
efficiently. Further, the tanks are organized so as the permit
movement of the wines by gravity alone, thus immediately improving the
quality of the musts.
All Belland grapes are now harvested in
small plastic crates, as opposed to large vats, to preserve the quality
of the fruit. At the winery, all the grapes are rigorously sorted to
ensure that only perfectly healthy and ripe fruit is used. The
Chardonnays are progressively pressed by a state of the art Willmes
pneumatic press for 2 hours. The must is lightly clarified and then put
in barrels by gravity flow to ferment in a new barrel cellar with a
consistently cool ambient temperature. The barrels come from a single
supplier but have 3 different origins. 50% new, medium toast oak is
used for the Corton-Charlemagne and 33% for the Puligny-Montrachet,
which the balance being between 2-4 years age. The whites spend 10
months in barrel before the first racking.
The changes in the
harvesting and selection of the Pinot Noirs necessitated new material
in the cellar for de-stemming, as the flow of grapes going into the
de-stemmer was dramatically reduced in volume. The new equipment
ensures that whole, unblemished grapes are vinified; it incorporates
the qualities of whole-cluster fermentation, absent the harsh elements
from the stems. Similarly, the grapes are gently conveyed to the
fermentation tanks, where they are cooled to about 10 degrees C. for a
five-day period of cold maceration. This phase advances the extraction
of color and aroma. It is followed by the onset of fermentation, as the
temperatures are gradually raised over a two-week interval. During the
most intense phase of the fermentation, between about days 8-13, the
cap of grape skins is pumped over 3 times daily for optimal extraction.
The vatting period (cuvaison) lasts 3 weeks, followed by another 3-5
days after which the press wine is added. The reds wines are then
placed in barrels to complete their maturation over the next 14-18
months.
The barrel cellar has been completely renovated, to
allow for constant temperature and humidity, as well as the rotation of
the barrels, of which about 25% are new for the villages and 1er Crus
and 50% for the Grand Crus. The rest of the barrels are between 1 and 4
years old, and they are now maintained with new cleaning equipment. The
reds are assembled and racked one month before bottling, and are only
very lightly filtered when necessary. Bottling takes place 18 months
after harvest.
From the steps described above, and others as
well, it is clear the Jean-Claude Belland estate is now a Burgundy
domaine to watch. Cheron has rethought and optimized of all phases of
work at the property. His initiatives have already shown great results
with the 2005s and augur well for vintages to come.
|
