Gevrey-Chambertin "En Ergot" 1er Cru 2023

A Premier Cru that wears its greatness quietly: 12.5% Vol., fine-grained tannin, aromatic depth. Jean-Louis Trapet doesn't build powerhouse wines, but wines that let the soil speak.

The En Ergot vineyard lies in Gevrey-Chambertin in the Côte de Nuits, where Domaine Trapet Père et Fils farms 18.5 hectares. Three Grand Crus, Chambertin, Chapelle-Chambertin and Latricières-Chambertin, form the heart of the estate. In his Gevrey-Chambertin vineyards, Jean-Louis Trapet found fossilised oyster shells, remnants of a former seabed. The family has worked here for seven generations: in the 1880s, Arthur Trapet secretly grafted vines onto American rootstock, a method legalised in 1888. The house's credo is "Les hommes passent et la terre reste", people pass, the land remains.

Pure Pinot Noir. Since 1996, Jean-Louis Trapet has farmed biodynamically, Demeter-certified since 2009. In the cellar, observation takes precedence over intervention: a portion of whole clusters go into the fermentation vats, new oak is kept to a maximum of 50 percent, and movements are gentle, relying on gravity.

Dry and clearly defined, with red cherry, raspberry and a hint of blackcurrant, alongside violet and a salty, chalky minerality. The tannin is fine-grained, the acidity keeps the fruit in motion, and the finish stays lean and long.

Jean-Louis Trapet is among the pioneers of biodynamics in Burgundy; the Guide des meilleurs vins de France awards the estate three stars, its highest rating. Together with his wife Andrée, he also runs the Trapet Alsace estate in Riquewihr.