DOMAIN HENRI & GILLES BUISSON
Facts and wines
Domaine Henri et Gilles Buisson is run today by the ambitious and extremely talented brothers Franck and Frédérick Buisson, the family has a long history as wine producers. The house currently has 19 ha. top fields in the best appellations, all grown organically. The grapes are Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Aligoté and Gamay and both mighty red wines and intense white wines are produced here. All wines have distinct terroir character.
Red wine
- Bourgogne Rouge 2018 100% Pinot noir
- Beaune Les Prevoles 2017 100% Pinot noir
- St Romain Sous Roche 2017 100% Pinot noir
- Volnay 1er Cru Chanlin 2016/2017 100% Pinot noir
- Pommard Petits Noizons 2017 100% Pinot noir
- Corton Grand Cru Renardes 2014 100% Pinot noir
- Bourgogne Blanc 2016 100% Chardonnay
- St Romain Sous Velle 2016/17 100% Chardonnay
- Corton Charlemagne 2016 100% Chardonnay
The Buisson family can be traced in Saint-Romain all the way back to the 12th century. The family has a long tradition as wine producers. After the Second World War, Henri Buisson was one of the first farmers in Burgundy to bottle his wines and sell them under his own name. At that time, the majority of the wines were otherwise marketed by the negociants (wine merchants). He then only had a few hectares of land.
In the 80s and 90s, the domain – under the management of Henri's son: Gilles Buisson – underwent a significant expansion. Vineyards were bought in Volnay, Pommard and Corton, among others, so that Domaine Buisson today has 19 ha. and a really nice collection of Villages, Premier Cru and Grand Cru wines. It is the brothers Franck and Frédérick who have run the domain in recent years.
PREMIUM TERROIRS
Based in Saint-Romain – a small secluded village a few kilometers from Meursault – they cultivate fields in several of the most famous communes of the Côte de Beaune. The domain's assortment thus consists of, among other things the mighty wines from the Grand Crus Corton and Corton-Charlemagne, a soft and feminine wine from the Premier Cru field "Chanlin" in Volnay, a deep and firm Premier Cru "Ecusseaux" from Auxey-Duresses, a nicely balanced "Les Petits Noizons ” from Pommard, a pure and intense “Chevalières” from Meursault and a light and elegant “Les Prévoles” from Beaune. In addition, Domaine Buisson offers excellent and affordable wines in the Saint-Romain, Monthélie and Bourgogne AOC appellations.
ORGANIC CULTIVATION AND NATURAL VINIFICATION ENSURE AUTHENTICITY
Already in the 70s, Henri Buisson decided to return to a cultivation that was free of chemicals. He had realized the negative influence of industrial agriculture on the wines, the environment and health. His grandsons Franck and Frédérick have followed in the family's footsteps and they even wanted to get proof of it. The domain has thus been officially certified organic since 2012.
PRECISE WORK IN THE CELLAR CREATES REFINED WINES
In the cellar, the work is gentle and natural. The qualities of the grapes are respected and the terroir character is emphasized through precise vinification. Among other things, what characterizes Domaine Buisson's wines and testifies to great winemaking talent is the combination of lightness, finesse and elegance together with a high intensity of scent and taste, not least in the domain's red wines.
The red wines of the Buisson brothers are usually quite light in colour, which distinguishes them from many modern Burgundy wines, which often have a dark, concentrated appearance. Thanks to the terroir-oriented organic cultivation and the low yield, the grapes are naturally concentrated and full of flavor. It is therefore not necessary for Frédérick Buisson to draw too much on the maceration of the grapes. This is of course necessary to produce a red wine, not least on the very light Pinot. But when you drag out the maceration too far, you lose much of the grape's finesse and you also often extract hard tannins from the skins, seeds and possibly the stems. This is one of the points where Frédérick shows that he masters his work as a winemaker; he knows how to stay on the knife's edge with neither too little nor too much concentration.
The white wines are at least as magnificent. They exhibit an unusual combination of intensity and purity. In the first years they are often on the sour tight side, but this is only positive as it allows the wines to last a long time and develop great complexity over the years, all the while rounding out.
The vinification, like the cultivation, is completely natural. Industrial yeast cells and additives are banned. Sulphites are used in very limited quantities and in recent years experiments have been carried out with wines completely without sulphites, which has made it possible to lower the use of sulfur also in the classic cuvées.
The storage is another point where the domain shows its great know-how. The wines are fermented, as is the tradition in Burgundy (alcoholic fermentation for the white wines and malolactic fermentation for whites and reds) and aged in French oak barrels. The oak casks are used exclusively to ensure slow oxidation during storage and not to "spice up" the taste. Therefore, no more than 10% new oak casks are used, with the exception of the Grand Cru wines. These have a structure that allows the oak and its tannins to be absorbed. This helps to give them a lifespan of several decades, during which they will gradually be able to develop a multitude of nuances and achieve optimal development.