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Domaine Sylvain Dussort

Having missed our scheduled appointment within the tsunami of requests and rejiggered itineraries, thankfully, I was able to visit Anne-Caroline and her father Sylvain Dussort the following morning, having seen them at the winery directly opposite Coche-Dury last year. This is a domaine amidst radical change as the baton is passed from father to daughter (see previous year’s producer profile for further information.) You can still sense the stress and how gutting it must have been to start your tenure with one of the most challenging seasons in recent years. I suggest starting with a difficult vintage as the only way is up, notwithstanding that you learn a lot more in a tough season than an easy one.

“I am putting everything back in barrels for 2023 except for 50% of the Aligoté,” Dussort tells me, since historical vintages tended to eschew the use of barrels. “In the vineyard, there have been changes with more plowing in every parcel. That is a major increase in the amount of work, so we invested in a new tractor. I wanted to be independent. We now use the old tractor for plowing and the new tractor for treating the vines. It has three nozzles so that the spray goes directly onto the vine [and is therefore more efficient]. Also, we have equipment to remove the roots. We had a guy who used to do that, but you could never guarantee that he would be available. Now, we can do it ourselves. I hired two seasonal workers who have been very good in the vineyard. This has all been to regenerate our 6 hectares of vines, though we pulled out almost one hectare, so there are now 5.15 hectares in production. In 2021, I started to rent a cold unit to moderate the temperatures during the pressing.”

There are only a handful of cuvées here and no labels to excite speculators. But it is always a pleasure to witness a story unfold as the next generation rejuvenates a name and changes the working practices to a positive effect. One to keep an eye on.

From Now, For My Latest Trick: Burgundy 2022 (Jan 2024) by Neal Martin

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2021 Bourgogne Aligoté

Color: White

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