"If you don't use herbicides, don't fertilize the soil, work the soil by plowing it regularly and thus promote life in it, only then can you speak of 'terroir'"
12 km south of Dijon, in the commune of Gevrey-Chambertin, lies the Denis Mortet domain. Organic working methods have been applied in the domain since the early 1990s, with the first crop coming for Denis in 1993. Denis Mortet belonged to the generation of winegrowers in Burgundy, who emphatically contributed to the quality revolution during that period. He was a perfectionist and made wines in the style of the time, with a lot of concentration and a lot of wood, which appealed to a large audience. He personally knew each individual vine and many who could have told me that there was no one who maintained his vineyards as perfectly as Denis. His credo was “We make grapes. Point on the line.” And this passion for his vineyards was expressed in his wines from his first vintages, when he was still unknown. Denis was therefore a visionary to a certain extent because today everyone says that 90% of the wine is made in the vineyard.
In the meantime, we are 20 years later and Arnaud, after the death of his father, has been running the domain together with his mother since 2006, although Laurence hardly interferes with the course of business. Arnaud was educated at the 'Lycée Viticole' in Beaune and gained practical experience with Anne-Claude Leflaive.
Gradually he has developed the style he loves without denying the house style. He uses less and less new wood and seeks refinement in combination with strength. In the meantime I have been through 3 generations of Mortet because I already came to Arnaud's grandfather, Charles - who is still glowing with health with his more than 80 years of life - and I have never tasted better wines than the last few years with 2012 as the absolute highlight.
Proof that even domains at the top with the necessary passion and work ethic can still do better. A satisfying thought!
website: Domaine Denis Mortet