Domaine Hubert Lignier Clos de la Roche 1974-2010
BY NEAL MARTIN |
This vertical tasting of Clos de la Roche from Domaine Hubert Lignier took place at Noizé restaurant in January 2020, just prior to the pandemic. It was a pleasure to see winemaker Laurent Lignier make the trip from Morey-Saint-Denis. Laurent Lignier represents the fifth generation, following his father, Hubert, who took the reins in 1983. My first encounters with the domaine came very early in my career, with several bottles of Clos de la Roche opened at lunches long before I visited. Later, when I did call in at the estate, I remember Hubert Lignier coming out to meet me in a very chic Seventies-style short-sleeved shirt, a little perplexed as he had been expecting me the following day.
Hubert and Laurent Lignier, pictured in Morey-Saint-Denis in 2018.
The domaine was established in the 1880s by Jacques Lignier, contemporaneous with the arrival of phylloxera in the Côte d’Or. His son Jules Lignier expanded the holdings to 2.5 hectares in the 1920s. Jules had three sons: Georges Lignier, whose son founded Domaine Georges Lignier; Maurice Lignier, whose lineage founded Domaine Lignier-Michelot; and Henri Lignier, whose son is Hubert Lignier. Hubert started working at the winery in 1959 after completing his military service. At that time, they did not bottle their own wine; instead, it was sold to merchants, which was commonplace then. The domaine began to bottle small quantities for private clients in the 1970s, and for importers the following decade.
In 1992, Hubert Lignier’s son Romain took over winemaking duties, but Romain died tragically in July 2004, leading to intra-familial repercussions between the Ligniers and Romain’s widow, Kellen. I remember visiting at a time when, for all intents and purposes, Hubert was locked out of his winery. Children’s toys were scattered around the courtyard, and Hubert rued that his grandchildren could no longer play with them. Thankfully, the issues were eventually resolved.
Hubert Lignier’s other son Laurent had worked with his father in 1986 and 1987. “I remember doing a lot of pigeage,” he told us during the January 2020 tasting. “I was naked!” After stints at Pernod Ricard and Albert Bichot, and presumably now clothed, Laurent Lignier returned to work at the domaine in 2004 and took full control of winemaking duties two years later. Since 2014, after the original holdings returned to the family, Laurent Lignier has expanded the portfolio considerably via a series of acquisitions, fermages and joint ventures. Until recently, his father always popped in to say hello, dressed in his vineyard overalls, still with the calloused hands of a man who spent all his life among vines. It’s only in the last couple of years that Hubert Lignier has taken a well-earned retirement, though he is always on hand to give advice to Laurent.
Domaine Hubert Lignier's Clos de la Roche formed one of my epiphanies in the salad days of my career when learning about Burgundy. Over the years, I have enjoyed many tastings with Hubert and Laurent Lignier. A chance to taste multiple vintages back to the 1970s was not to be missed.
