Wine road goes through Murlin
27 February 2024
For a day, they left their Côte-d’Or vineyard to visit Murlin. An opportunity to discover a site, a story and ancestral know-how. A guided visit on the other side of wine.
They braved the fog and crossed Morvan to reach Murlin mid-morning. They are winemakers, customers of Tonnellerie Marsannay, and their estates cover prestigious wine appellations: Chorey, Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet, Pommard, Santenay, Volnay…. Premiers crus, grands crus… Most of these wines are aged in oak barrels. Fine-grained oak, even very fine, as found in the Bertranges forest.
For Laurent Maître and Charline Cherrier of Tonnellerie Marsannay: “Every year, we try to come to Murlin with a few of our cooperage customers. It’s important to show our customers where the group was born: the site, the environment, the proximity of the forest. It’s unique. It’s also an opportunity for them to get to know each other, to share their skills, their professions and their backgrounds. It’s a very enriching experience, and one which helps to establish links. For the occasion, six of them, representing four estates, made their way to Nièvre.” We prefer to organize visits in small groups. It’s more friendly, and there’s more discussion. There’s more opportunity to speak freely, to ask targeted questions and to get the right answers. It’s tailor-made. A tour which starts in forest, where it all begins, then moves on to the stave mill, where it all comes together, and the La Grange cooperage workshop where three coopers set everything to music.
It makes you want to try it
As far as the winemakers are concerned, it’s the same “barrel” sound. Unique. “You can’t believe what goes behind a barrel, the oak, all the upstream work, the time scale. It’s good to know all this. It gives even more value to the material and therefore to our wines . “What I’ve seen of “La forêt des Bertranges” gives me a real desire to try out this prestigious origin. The quality is there, you know how it’s made, where it comes from. It’s reassuring . ” We become aware of the scarcity of matter. Barrels made from Murlin stavewood are a showcase for our wines – they’re like goldsmiths’ work . A busy day was punctuated by a visit to the Fonds Charlois exhibition spaces, and La Chênaie cosmetics area. Linda Hesters, esthetician and one of La Chênaie’s ambassadors, introduced visitors to three product ranges featuring active ingredients derived from oak. An original way of closing the loop and showing how the antioxidant properties of oak aren’t only valuable for wine, but also for the skin.
Burgundy climats
Burgundy’s vineyards, those of the Côtes de Nuits and Beaune where our customers come from, are unique in the world and some have been classified as Unesco World Heritage Sites since July 4, 2015. When we talk about climat in Burgundy, ” we’re not looking up at the sky; we’re looking down at the earth.” A climat refers to a parcel of vines in a particular Burgundy region. A climat refers to a parcel of vines, marked out gradually by man. Each climat has specific geological and hydrometric properties. Each climat is vinified separately, from a single grape variety. Each wine bears the name of the climate from which it is made. The climate then asserts itself in wine, vintage after vintage, thanks to the skills of winemaker. Nowhere else in the world has man sought to link wine production so closely to its location. Together, Burgundy’s climates constitute the very essence of Burgundy’s viticultural model. World-renowned wines.
Stéphane Ebel
The estates:
Founded in 1947 by Gabriel d’Ardhuy, Domaine d’Ardhuy is a Burgundy landmark. It extends over 38 ha of vines, 125 parcels, planted with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. From the Côtes de Nuits and Côtes de Beaune, the Domaine counts over 40 different appellations, including 6 grands crus, as well as their monopole “Le Clos des Langres”, exclusive wines from the Ardhuy family. The Domaine has been certified in Organic and Biodynamic Agriculture since 2012 and offers the Corton-Charlemagne cuvée from the Languettes climat. Only three barrels are produced each year.
Based in Corgoloin, between Beaune and Nuits-Saint-Georges, the estate covers 8 hectares of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay vineyards. It includes a number of prestigious appellations, including Hautes-Côtes-de-Beaune, Savigny-lès-Beaune, Beaune1er cru “Clos du Roi” and “Les Teurons”, Chorey-Lès-Beaune and Côte de Nuits-Village. Domaine Decelle et Fils has been certified organic since 2010.
Beaune 1er Cru “Clos du Roi” is one of the most emblematic of Beaune’s Premier Crus. The vines, over 50 years old, produce small, concentrated clusters. It’s aged in oak barrels for 18 months. The percentage of new oak doesn’t exceed 30%, so as not to distort the fine character of this wine.
Ludovic Pierrot has the distinction of farming vines in both Burgundy and Beaujolais. In total, his vineyards cover some 25 hectares in the Santenay, Pernand-Vergelesses, Hautes-Côtes de Beaune and Morgon appellations. Ecocert and Demeter certified, the vines are cultivated with respect for living organisms, without using synthetic chemicals. A committed winemaker, Ludovic Pierrot reveals his terroirs and offers wines with authentic aromas. He is also committed to sharing his biodynamic practices and know-how with other winegrowers.
Domaine des Astrelles has been owned by Isabelle and Jean-Marie Chapier since 2019. Spread over a mosaic of lieux-dits located between Côte de Nuits and Hautes-Côtes de Nuits, the estate’s wines have been certified organic since 2019. Each plot is harvested and vinified separately, guaranteeing the relationship between the earth, the plant, the fruit and the wine. The estate’s name – Les Astrelles – refers to the scattered nature of these parcels, like the different stars in a galaxy.
Les Astrelles covers 14 hectares of organic vineyards, located on several climats (parcels) in Gevrey-Chambertin, Burgundy, Marsannay and Fixin. Some thirty cuvées are produced.
Each year we welcome many visitors to Murlin. Mostly wine and spirits professionals, but also hotel and tourism professionals, pharmacists… They come to discover forest and oak, our trades and ancestral know-how: forestry, stave-making, cooperage. They come to discover La Chênaie’s unusual wooden constructions and cosmetics made with oak extracts. In this series of “À cœur ouvert” reports, we share with you the richness of these passionate meetings.
