Montrachet Restaurant - Brisbane Our Producers
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Our Producers

Our Producers

Laurent Juillot Domaine Michel Juillot
The wine...
The Domaine Michel Juillot in Mercurey compromises about thirty hectares, of which more than half are to be found in the area of the Mercurey appellation: 10 hectares of Mercurey red, 3 ha of Mercurey white, and 8.5 ha of Mercurey 1er cru. The business also includes regional appellations and the appellations of the Côte de Beaune: Corton Charlemagne, Corton Perrières, and Aloxe-Corton. The appellation of Mercurey, which in 2003 celebrated its 80th year, was the first in Burgundy to define the area that it would cover. It is divided into 85% red (Pinot Noir) and 15% white (Chardonnay).

Letting the terroir talk

..."We work all the parcels in the same manner because our added value is the terroir. The differences that exist between a grand cru, a 1er cru, a village wine and a generic, do not come from the intervention of man, but from the terroir, the earth, the sunshine, and the variety in environment...."    Laurent Juillot.
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      The Domaine has been run under environmentally friendly guidelines for several years. The vines are well looked after by working the soil. Analysis of the soil, the foliage and petiole are carried out regularly.

      Laurent doesn't hesitate to invest as he sees necessary. "It is better to buy quality materials because they pay for themselves in qualitative terms. Quality demands observation and patience." The domaine has been using two meteorological stations for the last eight years. "At a certain temperature point, and depending on the vegetative state of the vines, they alert us to the risk of mildew, thus allowing us to treat at the right moment. I always prefer to anticipate." Says Laurent.

The domaine invests just as much in the cellar: a pneumatic cap-puncher, open tanks, temperature control... a tool that is extremely useful for rapidly lowering the temperature in tank. The vinification is classical: maceration, fermentation, then post-fermentation maceration according to the vintage. The proportion of new wood varies according to each terroir: between 10 and 35%. The wines stay in barrel from between 12 to 18 months according to their balance.

...and its market

      The domaine Michel Juillot produces about 180 000 bottles each year. The entire production is bottled. The are destined both for export and France, sold both to private individuals and the restaurant trade. "We export directly to 23 countries," clarifies Laurent, including some unlikely ones such as Burkina Faso and Senegal. The main export markets are North America, Europe and Asia.

      At the moment the Domaine is selling the 2002 and 2003 vintages, but also a little 2001, and magnums and other larger bottles from 1993 to 2000. "We always have three years in stock" explains Laurent, "it's the way we work: it allows us to maintain our markets when we have a vintage like the one in 2003 for example. It's my philosophy, but it is true I can do this because the Domaine has existed for 4 generations. My grandfather Louis, was one of the first to sell in bottles between the two wars, and my father remained faithful to and expanded the clientele. Our clients have remained faithful to us, the longest for over four generations."

Whatever the vintage, the wines of the Domaine have a potential to age for about ten years.

      "It's what our clients are looking for, wines with charm, showing good red fruit, but also with a certain maturity: for the whites there is always plenty of minerality. This is what gives them good potential to age. My father has kept both Mercurey red and white 1966 for me: they are both still full of life!"

Prospects

      "Nothing is ever taken for granted," resumes Laurent. He continues to keep a watchful eye on the quality of his terroir, and to work towards its added value. "At the moment we are identifying through analysis the indigenous yeasts present on the grapes of our different terroirs," he explains. The first results are interesting, and show three different groups of yeasts, but it is still too soon to draw any conclusions. The research must be done over several years. Every parcel from generic to grand cru is studied. "If one wants a Clos des Barraults to be different to a Clos Tonnerre, one needs to leave the indigenous yeasts in place," D06200is his assessment.

Key dates and mini-CV

      1414: Parchments mention that the Juillot family farm some vines in the commune of Mercurey.
      1930: My great-grandfather is awarded our first gold medal at the agricultural congress of Paris for his Mercurey red 1929.
      1961: Michel Juillot takes over and enlarges his father Louis Juillot's Domaine.
      1988: Laurent Juillot rejoins the family Domaine.

Training: in 1985 Laurent Juillot obtained a BTA specialising in 'the elaboration and commercialisation of wines and spirits' from Davayé (71). He also followed a number of apprenticeships in the vineyards of France and abroad, notably 6 months in Switzerland in the vineyards of the Mandements (Genevois), but also in countries further afield. He thus took part in 6 harvests in 12 months in 1987/1988 in America and the Southern Hemisphere. These travels were a rewarding experience and confirmed his passion for the life of a vigneron, which he had first decided was for him at the age of 8.
Montrachet Bar Comptoir Restaurant ABN 43 071 777 752