In the heart of the vineyard

Domaine Patrick Javillier is located in Meursault, capital of the great white wines of Burgundy.
Their business depends on their training but above all it is the result of the skill and know-how passed on from the preceding generations.

Patrick Javillier began working in wine in 1974 and now, his daughter Marion produces an exceptional range of white Burgundy from Meursault and beyond, with her proud father close by. The esteem in which their estate is held is even more impressive considering their low holdings in 1er and grands crus. There are some red vineyards though his wife’s family, but the core of the domaine is white. 

Patrick is one of the most reflective of white wine makers, the walls of his cellars and the sides of his barrels being covered in chalk where he has been developing one or another of his theories. He is absolutely persuaded that long élévage on the lees is essential for the future development of the wine in bottle. Most of the wines are taken out of barrel after a year, then matured further in tank on their fine lees. 

The philosophy of one plus one equals three is present already on regional level, for his two Bourgogne Blancs.
In the cellar he treats his Bourgogne Blancs the same way he treats his Meursaults. He leaves them on the lees in order to keep the character of the climats.

The Corton-Charlemagne spends a second winter in wood. It would be difficult to find another winemaker with quite such a perfectionist attitude as Javillier, a man who approaches winemaking with the precision of a research scientist, yet is always ready to question his own success. Interestingly, the top wines such as the Corton-Charlemagne are fermented and matured entirely in one year old wood.

In Patrick Javillier's cellar in Meursault one plus one equals three. His old school teacher would probably disagree, but this is the philosophy Javillier has been using for years when making his wines. Patrick Javillier produces a small amount of grand cru wine – Corton-Charlemagne – and an even smaller amount of premier cru. His Meursault Charmes only produces 400 bottles a year.

Marion on 2016

​I love the 2016s – despite it being a micro-vintage! ​We have a really a good balance between the acidity and depth. ​The reds totaled less than 50% of a normal volume, and there was no white Savigny. The Bourgogne Forgets cuvée wasn’t touched by the frost, neither was the Bourgogne Cuvée Oligocène, but the Meursault Clos du Cromin lost more than 60% – every vineyard was different. Bourgogne is biggest volume here, so from a volume perspective it wasn’t too bad for the domaine.

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