We visited Domaine Michel Prunier & Fille in Auxey Duresses. Michel Prunier and his wife were our hosts. They gave us a cellar tour and a tasting.
Auxey-Duresses
The tiny village of Auxey Duresses sits at the juncture of the red wine terroirs of Volnay and Pommard and the white wine terroir of Meursault. It is one of the lesser known communes. The Auxey Duresses wines provide a very good pricequality ratio.
Ola Bergman: Up in the valley behind Monthélie and Meursault is Auxey-Duresses, a village struggling against both the English-speaking world’s inability to pronounce the name and its location off the beaten track on the Cote d’Or. … Auxey-Duresses is a charming little village with some 350 inhabitants. The houses are tightly squeezed together along the main road. There are a total of 25 winegrowers in the village; most of them bottle themselves, but some sell their wine to négociants.
On the northern side the “Les Duresses” vineyard is split between Auxey-Duresses and Monthélie. It is also at this side of the village where you find the nine premier crus grouped together – “Les Duresses”, “Clos du Val”, “Climat du Val”, “Les Bréterins”, “La Chapelle”, “Reugne”, “Bas des Duresses”, “Les Grands-Champs” and “Les Ecusseaux” – with “Clos du Val” being the one generally rated highest. There are only two domaines offering this wine – Domaine Michel Prunier & Fille and Domaine Prunier-Damy.
Domaine Michel Prunier & Fille
The Prunier family has been making wine in Auxey Duresses for over 4 generations. The Domaine Michel Prunier however was founded by Michel Prunier and his wife Michèle with 2 hectares of vineyards in 1968.
Today, the domaine has 12 hectares and is run by Michel Prunier, his wife Michèle and daughter Estelle. Estelle Prunier studied viticulture and after graduating in 2002 she worked in Bordeaux and Australia to gain experience. In 2014 she came home to work with her parents.
Domaine Michel Prunier & Fille sells 40% of its production to a negociant about 3 months after the harvest. Of the remainder, 40% is exported, 40% is sold in France and 20% is sold at the premise.
Ola Bergman: The flagship of the domaine is the Auxey-Duresses "Clos du Val". This premier cru is situated between the "Climat du Val" and "Les Bréterins", facing south. Only two wine-growers offer this wine – Domaine Michel Prunier & Fille and Domaine Prunier-Damy. The annual production is only 5800 bottles.
Domaine Michel Prunier & Fille also offers a straight Auxey-Duresses Premier Cru. It is a blend of three parcels – "Climat du Val", "Bas des Duresses" and "Les Grands Champs". "Climat du Val" and "Bas des Duresses" are at opposite ends of the premier cru area in Auxey-Duresses. "Bas des Duresses" is on the border to Monthélie while "Climat du Val" is at the western end". "Les Grands Champs" is a long strip of land alongside the main road, just below "Les Brétins", "La Chapelle" and "Reugne".
There is also an Auxey-Duresses village, as well as village reds from both Chorey-lès-Beaune (both Chorey tout court and Les Beaumonts) and Pommard (Les Vignots). Outside the village there are another two premier crus – Beaune, "Les Sizies" and Volnay, "Les Caillerets". The red portfolio is completed with a Côtes de Beaune-Villages together with the generics Bourgogne Pinot Noir and Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Beaune.
The whites are not as many; two generics – Bourgogne Aligoté and Bourgogne Chardonnay – to start with, followed by two Auxey-Duresses village (one of which is a vieilles vignes) and a Meursault, Les Clous.
And since Michel Prunier studied in Champagne there is also a sparkling wine, a Crémant de Bourgogne made from 50 percent chardonnay, 40 percent pinot noir and ten percent aligoté.
The Wines we Tasted
2014 Domaine Michel Prunier & Fille, Auxey-Duresses blanc
2014 Domaine Michel Prunier & Fille, Meaursault Les Clous blanc, non-classified climat in Meaursault
2014 Domaine Michel Prunier & Fille, Crémant de Bourgogne, 50 percent Chardonnay, 40 percent Pinot Noir and 10 percent Aligoté
2014 Domaine Michel Prunier & Fille,Chorey-lès-Beaune Les Beaumonts rouge
2014 Domaine Michel Prunier & Fille, Auxey-Duresses Premier Cru, rouge, blend of three parcels – "Climat du Val", "Bas des Duresses" and "Les Grands Champs".
2014 Domaine Michel Prunier & Fille, Beaune, "Les Sizies" rouge
2013 Domaine Michel Prunier & Fille, Volnay, "Les Caillerets" rouge
Lunch at La Crémaillère
Following the tour and tasting, we had lunch at La Crémaillère. In 2002 Domaine Michel Prunier & Fille expanded into the restaurant business and bought La Crémaillère across the street. Jean-Michel Vernochet is the chef there now. The cuisine is traditional with regional specialities.
Bye-bye
Thanks Michel for a great tour and tasting.
Postings: Burgundy (and Champagne) 2016 Tour by ombiasy WineTours: From Lyon to Reims - Wine, Food, Culture and History (Published and Forthcoming Postings)
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