Domaine Bruno Clair Gevrey Chambertin 1er Cru "Les Cazetiers"

When Bruno Clair reconstituted his family's historic parcels after the Clair-Daü break-up in 1985, Les Cazetiers was among the premier cru sites he reclaimed — vines on an estate whose average age now sits at ~50 years, rooted in the shallow brown limestone soils characteristic of Gevrey-Chambertin's mid-slope. The east-facing aspect at roughly 300 m elevation channels morning sun while preserving cool afternoon temperatures, driving the mineral tension and aromatic lift that define the domaine's house signature.

Vinification follows a restrained protocol: hand-harvested, carefully sorted fruit fermented with ambient indigenous yeast in open wooden vats, preceded by a cold pre-fermentation maceration of 5–7 days and a total maceration of 10–15 days with punch-downs. Whole-cluster inclusion (20–50% range across the estate) adds structural backbone without obscuring site character. Aging runs 18–20 months in barriques at moderate new-oak levels, followed by a short tank blending period before bottling unfined and filtered only when the vintage demands it.

The 2021 vintage — frost-reduced, lower-yielding — produced wines Bruno Clair himself described as proof that 'for truly great wines, there are no bad years': bright cherry fruit, rose petal lift, crisp acidity, and firm tannins that reward 5–10 years of cellaring yet are already approachable.