The Legacy of Dominique Belluard
The late Dominique Belluard was a legend in his time. By the time he built up a very loyal cult following, he left us too soon. Sadly, Dominique passed a couple of years ago in 2021 at the age of 55, leaving little in place to continue his incredible legacy. I enjoyed several great bottles of his wines over the years when they were “available” before his fame took off in wine circles. Some sparkling, some still, all were exemplary, unique and truly terroir driven. When you see the terroir of the vineyards it all clicks. I had some smart and “in the know” retailer friends I bought these from until they then disappeared even from their early access to such a brilliant project.
With no plan in place to maintain the incredible legacy, his wife and a few vigneron friends that included Franck Balthazar and Jean-Francois Ganevat stepped in to help save and continue Dominique’s legacy. A plan was created to save the Domaine and transition it from Valérie, Dominique’s partner, to the new entity.
Dominique was the most important producer in the Savoie during his time. At crazy altitudes of 1000-1500 feet above sea level, the vineyards sat directly under the gaze of Mont Blanc. He kept Gringet from disappearing, it was almost extinct and today there are only 22 hectares planted only in Ayze, the village home of the Belluard. FUN FACT: just before the autoroute tunnel between Italy and France, which is quite the feat of engineering, at the very last exit prior to the toll heading towards Italy, lies the tiny village of Ayze.
For those new to Belluard and Gringet, Dominique took over the estate in 1988 from his father and changed the perception of the Gringet grape. He took the Gringet from obscurity and the brink of extinction to one capable of producing exceptional wines with a distinct personality and sense of place, both in still and traditional method sparkling wines.
For more on Dominique please check out this beautiful tribute to him here Lord of the Gringet: An Appreciation.
The New Team
The team that saved this domaine consisted of four men. Two of them were Domaine Belluard’s distributor in France – Raphaël Bennour and Miguel Sarzier, who had already worked with Dominique for 15 years. They both knew and loved the wines. They contacted Vincent Ruiz, a brilliant young cellarmaster working for Franck Balthazar who, in turn, spoke to Franck. A quartet was formed. The four took over the estate as a partnership in 2021, renaming it at Valérie’s request, although she stayed on to manage the transition. They felt that it was symbolic to bring the grape that Dominique was most famous for, into the name of the new project: Domaine du Gringet. Domaine du Gringet cultivates 10 hectares of Gringet, along with 1 hectare each of white Altesse and red Mondeuse.
The Winemaking Path Forward
Vincent Ruiz relocated to the Arve valley full time in the spring of 2022. Vincent farms in his predecessor’s footsteps, but also introduced innovative training and pruning techniques, while staying true to biodynamic and organic viticulture (uncertified). He got rid of the tractors to avoid soil compaction and restore plant biodiversity. This allowed for wild grasses to flourish between the rows. Vincent significantly reduced yields and is pursuing official certifications for organic farming. While the sparkling wines are gone, the emphasis here is on still wines with clear terroir expressions, including a single-vineyard wine from Dominique’s most prized vineyard, Le Feu.
Vincent favors long pressings in a pneumatic horizontal press in the cellar, followed by light cold settling for the Gringet and Altesse. For the Mondeuse, Vincent pays tribute to his northern Rhône roots, whole clusters fermentations, long macerations, and gentle extractions. Fermentation takes place over ambient yeasts in concrete or ceramic vessels, and the wines age on fine lees for nine months in concrete eggs and tanks without any racking until bottling. The wines are bottled, unfined and unfiltered, without oxygen exposure and aged for an additional few months before release. The wine sees only minimal (less than 16 mg/L) of sulfur to protect these gentle wines.
*To place an order please click HERE to buy from our website.
‘La Bergerie’ Vin de Savoie Ayze Blanc 2022
$46.99 on 3+ US Low
$51.99 reg
Appellation: Vin de Savoie
Grape: Gringet 100%
Winemaker: Vincent Ruiz
Vineyard: Planted over yellow marly soils. From the lieux-dits Le Pré Milleret and Chez Reydet. South-facing.
Viticulture: Biodynamic (not certified). Organic certification pending.
Winemaking: Pressed for 4-7 hours, settled for 24 hours. Then fermented over ambient yeasts. Aging: Aged for 9 months on the lees in concrete eggs (2/3) and stainless steel (1/3). Then bottled and aged for 10 additional months. Bottled with no oxygen exposure. 10-20 mg/L total SO2.
Chez Eduard Vin de Savoie Ayze Blanc 2022
$79.99 on 3+
$84.99 reg US Low
Appellation: Vin de Savoie
Grape: Gringet 100%
Winemaker: Vincent Ruiz
Vineyard: South-facing vineyard, from 620m, planted in 1914 over limestone-based soil with abundant scree.
Viticulture: Biodynamic (not certified). Organic certification pending.
Winemaking: Pressed for 4-7 hours, settled for 24 hours. Then fermented over ambient yeasts.
Aging: Aged for 9 months on the lees in sandstone amphoras. Then bottled and aged for 10 additional months. Bottled with no oxygen exposure. 10-20 mg/L total SO2.
‘Le Feu’ Vin de Savoie Ayze Blanc 2022
$84.99 on 3+
$89.99 reg US Low
Appellation: Vin de Savoie
Grape: Gringet 100%
Winemaker: Vincent Ruiz
Vineyard: Ferruginous soil comprised of clay over marl. The prize vineyard of Dominique Belluard, on a slope reaching to 440m (1,444 feet).
Viticulture: Biodynamic (not certified). Organic certification pending.
Winemaking: Pressed for 4-7 hours, settled for 24 hours. Then fermented over ambient yeasts.
Aging: Aged for 9 months on the lees in concrete eggs (2/3) and stainless steel (1/3). Then bottled and aged for 10 additional months. Bottled with no oxygen exposure. 10-20 mg/L total SO2.
*To place an order please click HERE to buy from our website.