We visit Domaine Joseph Faiveley in Nuits St. Georges. The visit included a tour and a tasting of 7 wines with Mathilde Nicolas, in charge of communications. During the past 2 years, Domaine Joseph Faiveley underwent a major renovation. We were able to tour the new facilities and actually spent quite some time in the new tank cellar, before we sat down with Mathilde Nicolas for an impressive tasting.
During the tour, we met Jérôme Flous, who heads Domaine Faiveley's technical team.
A few months after the visit of Domaine Joseph Faiveley in Nuits St. Georges, we enjoyed a fabolous winemaker dinner with Eve Faiveley in Hattenheim, Rheingau.
Domaine Faiveley
Domaine Joseph Faiveley is one of the biggest domains in the Bourgogne and, many would argue, one of the best. This illustrious company has been based in Nuits St Georges since the days of Pierre Faiveley who founded the business in 1825. His son Joseph gave his name to the family business, to be followed by (1) the first François, (2) Georges who was instrumental in founding the Chevaliers du Tastevin, (3) Guy who developed the business in the Côte Chalonnaise, (4) François who recently retired and (5) now his children Eve and Erwan.
Guy Faiveley, a brilliant intellectual who had a collection of diplomas, had the difficult job of succeeding his very colorful father. Yet, with his impetus, the domain doubled in size. François Faiveley took over the domain at the age of 25. He was able to give it a new boost – using a precursor of the sorting table and carrying out cold macerations for example. At the same age as his father, Erwan Faiveley took over the domain in 2007, becoming the seventh generation. Recently, he was joined by his sister Eve.
Initially, the company was a classic négociant, buying and selling wine. Bourgogne wines started to experience greater fame in Louis 14th's reign, when those high up in the King's court and foreign ambassadors in Paris started to take an interest. It was against this background that Pierre Faiveley founded the négociant business in 1825.
But from generation to generation, with a strong commitment to the quality of Burgundy’s patrimony, the Faiveley family has purchased vineyards and is today among the largest owners of classified vineyards in the Côte de Nuits, Côte de Beaune and Côte Chalonnaise.
In 2013, Domaine Faiveley acquired 20 hectares of vines previously owned by Domaine Dupont-Tisserandot, which is based in Gevrey-Chambertin. All together, the firm now owns 123 hectares of vineyards among which 12 hectares are grands crus and 27 premiers crus.
Along with this focus, Erwan and Eve Faiveley and General Manager Bernard Hervet have renovated the cellars, which now boast state-of-the-art barrel presses, custom-designed wooden vats and among the finest, air-cured oak casks available in the world. Unlike many wine growers, Domaine Faiveley has united the management of its vineyards and its cellar under the direction of one technical director, Jerome Flous.
The grapes are entirely destemmed and fermented in new custom-designed wooden vats for the finer wines, conical stainless steel tanks for the lesser cuvées. Fermentation is slow and at low temperatures.
Wines mature afterwards in oak barrels in 19th century vault cellars that offer ideal conditions for long ageing. These barrels coming from great coopers have been rigorously selected for their fine grain and light toast. Both premier and grand cru wines may receive two-thirds new wood.
Many of Faiveley's top wines are hand bottled with no filtration. This in turn results in clean, opulent wines that often show Pinot Noir at its best.
Faiveley’s white wines are both silky and powerful. They bring together purity, tension and minerality. The red wines are the perfect illustration of a successful marriage of elegance, precision and concentration.
This write up is based on what I learnt from Mathilde Nicolas during recent tours and tastings at Domaine Faiveley in Nuits-Saint-Georges and the Faiveley web site, supplemented by the excellent write-ups on the web site of Berry Bros. and Rudd as well as Frederic Wildmann.
Tasting
Les Rouges
2016 Domaine Faiveley Mercurey 1er Cru "Le Clos du Roy"
The climatic conditions were very mixed in 2016. The harvests took place later than usual in order to allow the grapes to reach their optimum ripeness levels. Our wines present fruity aromas. The wines are smooth and fleshy. This promises to be a very distinctive vintage.
2016 Domaine Faiveley Gevrey-Chambertin Mercurey "Vielles Vignes"
The weather conditions in 2015 were outstanding and the vintage is characterised by its rich and very distinctive style. Excellent ageing potential.
The grapes are harvested and sorted by hand. The proportion of de-stemmed grapes and whole clusters varies depending on the vintage. The wines are punched down daily in order to extract colour, tannins and aromas from the skin of the grapes. After a 19 day vatting period, the alcoholic fermentation is complete. The free-run wine is run off using a gravity system whilst the marc is pressed slowly and gently in order to extract an exceptionally pure press wine. The wines are aged for 14 months in French oak barrels (20-30% new oak) which have been selected for their fine grain and moderate toast. The wines are left to age in our hygrometry-controlled cellars at consistent, natural temperatures.The wines are aged in vats for 2 months at the end of the ageing process.
2012 Domaine Faiveley Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru "Les Porêts St-Georges"
wine-searcher average price in US$: 81
Exceptional weather conditions gave us an exceptional 2012 vintage. The wines are rich and indulgent with a good balance between richness and aromatic intensity. Excellent cellaring potential.
Deep ruby red colour. The nose discloses black fruits, toasty notes and a hint of oak. The smooth, round attack gives way to a powerful and structured mid-palate. A well-balanced and very persistent wine with excellent ageing potential.
2011 Domaine Faiveley Corton "Clos des Cortons Faiveley" Grand Cru
wine-searcher average price in US$: 112
A rather intense black colour. The nose is powerful, concentrated, fruity and woody. The attack is strong and tannic. The tannins are firm, but well incorporated by the smoothness. We are in the presence of a wine of great volume, with supple tannins and very long-lasting aromas and tastes. This is a fine wine for cellaring.
1998 Domaine Faiveley Corton "Clos des Cortons Faiveley" Grand Cru
wine-searcher average price in US$: 163
"Clos des Cortons Faiveley" has been owned by the Faiveley family as a monopole since 1874. It is the domaine's flagship wine and one of just two Burgundian Grands Crus to bear the name of its owner (Romanée-Conti being the other).
Les Blancs
2015 Domaine Faiveley Montagny
Montagny is the most southern of the Côte Chalonnaise villages and lies at the border of the Mâconnais. The chardonnay vines thrive in this rugged terrain. The vines face east/south-east and are planted on slopes that reach as high as 400 metres above sea level.
2015 Domaine Faiveley Meursault
2015 Domaine Faiveley Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru "Champ Gain"
wine-searcher average price in US$: 75
In 1879, Puligny added its name to that of its more renowned Grand Cru: Montrachet. The exceptional terroirs of Puligny-Montrachet offer optimum conditions for the Chardonnay grape variety. The "Champ Gain" climat covers 10 hectares of vines situated just below "La Garenne" on the upper parts of the hillside. The name of this parcel signifies "land reclamation on the forest". The domaine has owned this climat since the 2014 vintage.
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