OK, do any of you folks who have had boots on the ground in Meursault have any idea where Dupont-Fahn’s vines are located for this wine? I’ve heard it described multiple ways on various sites, including:
straddling Les Perrières de Meursault and Sous le dos d’Anes
essentially a declassified Meursault Dos d’Ane, with part of the terrain also lying within the Chaumes des Perrieres site too
Meursault from 1ers Sous Dos d’Ane and Perrières. In fact, the vines sit just above Coche-Dury’s plot in Perrières.
Circled in red is the Chaumes de Perrieres vineyard which is non-designated (ie not AOC). We know this because it is in white and is not colored on the map. It sits directly above Perrieres. Chaumes means ‘stubble’ so it is translated to mean the ‘stubble of Perrieres’ which is cute.
The far south of the vineyard and the far north of Perrieres are adjacent. My understanding is that the DuPont-Fahn parcel of Chaumes de Perrieres is at the far south and Coche-Dury’s parcel of Perrieres is in the north of the vineyard so they are quite close to each other.
Not boots on the ground but my understanding is that a lot of this used to be Perrieres since it is on the southern end but because of drainage and subsequent irrigation that was required it was reclassified Bourgogne. I love this stuff from Dupont-Fahn.
I’ve had the 2018 a few times. It was only like low $30s when I bought it, and it was very good value at that price. Of course, the prices appear to be rising significantly because Burgundy.
For my palate, it is a little more oaked, a little more of a rounded creamy texture, than I’m usually seeking out in White Burgundy? But it’s a good wine, a good value, and an interesting little story within the political naming structure of Burgundy.
The version I heard was that they added some gravel and/or topsoil to the vineyard, which raised the elevation of the vineyard by a foot or something, and that was disallowed and thus the wine could not be classified as Meursault.
But I have no idea, I’m not claiming to be any authority here.
Yes, this is what happened. He pulled soil up from the lower elevation (after getting permission!) and his neighbors later complained, so the entire vineyard was declassified from 1er Perrieres to humble Bourgogne!
My issue with the circled red part is that google maps shows literally no vines planted in that area:
This is fun! I have loved this wine for a long time, too. I wonder if it’s actually the little square at the end of Chaumes. It looks like there’s some row vegetation there, but it’s white on the vineyard map.
Wait, I am looking closer now at your map. I see the words “Les Chaumes des Perrieres” actually have an arrow pointing to them from a colored parcel that to me appears to be connected to Genevrieres. There are lots of arrows on this version of the vineyard map and I’m not sure what they mean:
Maybe it’s this plot, but then I would think it would NOT be colored as part of Genevrieres on the maps. Plus this section of vines looks homogenous and contiguous:
This is a little blurb that I found that seems to make the most sense. I can’t vouch for the actual source here. It is from a retailer. FWIW. Used to be Meursault village. Directly across the road from Coche Dury’s Meursault Perrieres.
This wine is one of Burgundy’s best kept secrets. Chaumes des Perrières” has an interesting history, as up until the late-1970s, this lieu à dit above the premier cru of Perrières in Meursault was entitled to Meursault villages status. Raymond Dupont-Fahn’s grandfather, Michel, had bought a parcel here in 1975 and petitioned the INAO to add twenty centimeters of top soil to his unplanted parcel, as the topsoil was so thin that he feared new plantings here would wither and die. The INAO agreed, but the other growers in Meursault were upset and petitioned to have the parcel declassified to Bourgogne from Meursault AC, which they were also successful in doing. So these vines, which sit fifty meters above the Perrières vines of Domaine Coche-Dury are only ranked as Bourgogne!**
I’ve heard both that it was simply Meursault AC and that it was Perrieres 1er, which would explain why the lieu dit is called “Chaumes des Perriers.” Here’s what another trusted retailer says:
Dupont-Fahn is an infamous name in Burgundy. Raymond, the current Dupont-Fahn at the helm, inherited a range of well sited and well regarded vineyards in Meursault from his father, Michel. However, one of these vineyards has garnered its fair share of controversy.
Bourgogne Chaumes des Perrières. But this is no ordinary Bourgogne. It’s 40 year old Meursault from 1ers Sous Dos d’Ane and Perrières. In fact, the vines sit just above Coche-Dury’s plot in Perrières. It’s illustrated below on the map.
So why is it humble Bourgogne? Well, Raymond’s grandfather thought that the topsoil was too thin at the top of the vineyard to support healthy vines. So, in 1975, he filled in 20 inches of topsoil from the bottom of the vineyard in Perrières to aid in planting. This is a big no-no, and was a cause celèbre in Burgundy, which growers still talk about today. I’ve had more than one grower bring it up and make the “cuckoo” sign next to their temple when describing grand-père Dupont-Fahn’s decision to disturb the soils of the vineyard.
At the time, however, the outrage was strong enough to have the vineyard declassified from 1er to Bourgogne for violating the INAO rules. And it has remained Bourgogne until this day.
From the Lopa offer:
To repeat the story - the Chaumes de Perrieres parcel is about 200 feet from Meursault Perrieres, directly above the Coche Dury parcel high up on the slope. Old vines and a really interesting terroir. The story goes that this should technically be Meursault 1er ‘Dos d’Ane’ in the ‘Perrieres’ climat that touches Meursault Perrieres - but when the family planted the vineyard in the mid-1970’s it was straight on rock with no topsoil and they had to add just under a foot of dirt which prompted neighbors to complain and the authorities to declassify the parcel as Bourgogne Blanc. Typical Burgundian inter-appellation politics.
The “1er Dos d’Ane” version seems most likely, given what we’re seeing on the maps that have been posted.
Agree that this is the most likely location. On the Kelman/Foulkes maps used by Jaser Moris in his second ediotion this plot is indicated as Le Dos d’Ane, Bourgogne tout court. On other maps its Chaumes des Perrieres.That might explain why it we see different refferences. So this seems tl be the only possible location that fits al the discriptions found by others.
