| Region of production: | Côte de Nuits |
| Winery Location: | Nuits-Saint-Georges |
| Year Established: | 1919 |
Vineyard Holdings
14.5 ha
- Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Saint-Georges Premier Cru: 1.08 ha Pinot Noir, planted in 1961
- Nuits-Saint-Georges Clos des Porrets-Saint-Georges Premier Cru (monopole): 3.57 ha, mostly Pinot Noir, but a small amount of Pinot Gouges, planted in 1975
- Nuits-Saint-Georges Vaucrains Premier Cru: 0.98 ha Pinot Noir, planted in 1960
- Nuits-Saint-Georges Chaignots Premier Cru: 0.46 ha Pinot Noir, planted in 1960
- Nuits-Saint-Georges Pruliers Premier Cru: 1.88 ha Pinot Noir, planted in 1960
- Nuits-Saint-Georges Chênes Carteaux Premier Cru: 1.01 ha Pinot Noir, planted in 1999
Top Wines Produced
- Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Saint-Georges Premier Cru
- Nuits-Saint-Georges Clos des Porrets-Saint-Georges Premier Cru (monopole): red and white
- Nuits-Saint-Georges Vaucrains Premier Cru
- Nuits-Saint-Georges Chaignots Premier Cru
- Nuits-Saint-Georges Pruliers Premier Cru
- Nuits-Saint-Georges Chênes Carteaux Premier Cru
Inaugural Vintages
- Domaine-bottling began in 1930.
Average Total Production
- 37,200 bottles
Summary
Henri Gouges is an important figure in the history of Burgundy. Along with the Marquis d’Angerville, he spoke out against the fraudulent blending taking place in many négociants’ cellars. To combat this he began domaine-bottling in 1930. He also worked with INAO in the 1930s to delimit Burgundy crus for new AOC laws. In the 1940s Henri noticed that one of his Pinot Noir vines in the premier cru Perrière had mutated and had begun producing white grapes. He propagated cuttings of the color mutation, and eventually converted the entire Perrière vineyard to what Clive Coates nicknamed “Pinot Gouges.” Henri shared the cuttings with friends in the village, and as a result several growers in Nuits-Saint-Georges now cultivate this selection of Pinot Blanc in their vineyards (see Robert Chevillon). In the 1970s Domaine Henri Gouges was also one of the first in Burgundy to plant grass in vineyard rows to combat erosion in some of their steep premier cru vineyards. The vineyards have been farmed organically since 2008 by Henri’s grandsons, Pierre and Christian, and his great-grandson Grégory. Today, Domaine Henri Gouges remains one of the best domaines in Nuits-Saint-Georges for classic, long-lived Burgundy.
Style & Vinification Techniques
Grapes are sorted on a sorting table and completely de-stemmed prior to fermentation. They are allowed to begin fermenting slowly without inoculation, with daily pigeage for 15 days in glass-lined cement tanks. The free-run and press wine are combined, and the wine is aged in 15-20% new oak for 18 months prior to bottling. The wines have not been fined or filtered since the 1990s. Grégory Gouges has been working to make the family wines less backward and tannic upon release – they have a reputation for requiring a decade of aging to open up.
Producer Website: Henri Gouges