Bruno Lorenzon, the owner of Domaine Bruno Lorenzon in the Côte Chalonnaise of Burgundy, France, is known as being an intense, particular winemaker.
His exacting standards have produced Premier Cru wines in a village without any Grand Cru vineyards, allowing his wines to transcend their terroir.
Before taking over the family vineyard from his parents in 1997, Bruno Lorenzon worked around the world as a consultant, which enabled him to find his own winemaking style, helping him to understand and appreciate the terroir of the family winery.
His travels took him to Spain and South Africa, where he gained the experience necessary to run and manage his own vineyard. Working at other vineyards in different countries has helped Bruno learn from those he worked under, as he modified his own techniques in accordance with what he learned, order developing a style that is uniquely his own.
Nowadays, Bruno’s sister Carline works with him to run the family business, sharing his respect for nature and the grapes themselves. The two of them are currently working to build a reception area next to the estate, where visitors can participate in wine tastings while looking out over the vineyards.
This determination, to make the top wines possible as well as to expand his holdings, has put Bruno at the forefront of wine producers in the Côte Chalonnaise region.
Domaine Bruno Lorenzon’s vineyards occupy around 5 hectares of the village of Mercurey, in the Côte Chalonnaise. Over 4 hectares are devoted to growing Pinot Noir grapes and 0.7 hectares are dedicated to Chardonnay grapes.
Bruno’s personal philosophy is to grow grapes as they did in the 19th century, with minimum intervention and maximum understanding. He says that having good grapes can do 90% of the heavy lifting involved in wine production and that everything should be in balance.
Yields are kept small so that the best wine possible can be produced.
Bruno Lorenzon is known as being a very intense, particular winemaker. He is meticulous about how he maintains his vineyards, which is what helps his wines to transcend their terroir and have made them some of the finest in Burgundy. All of the vineyards have southern exposures and he is able to produce Premier Cru wines despite their terroir limitations. The soils in the area are made up of limestone and clay.
The 19th century farming techniques that Bruno uses is called lutte raisonnee, or reasoned struggle. These practices are close to organic farming, rejecting the use of synthetic chemicals on the vines. This means that on the estate, no herbicides are used and the grapes are harvested by hand in small crates when they reach peak ripeness.
Perhaps one of the most unique things about Domaine Bruno Lorenzon is that, before taking over his family estate, Bruno Lorenzon was a cooper. Due to his experience making and selecting barrels, Bruno hand picks the barrels in which his wines will age, so he is able to pair the quality of the wood with the quality of the wines.
Bruno’s biggest philosophy when it comes to winemaking is that the character of the terroir and the wine itself is what should shine through in the finished product and that these characteristics should not be overshadowed by the oak. He says that every vintage has its own identity and that they should be accepted for their own, unique qualities. He continues that there is no use trying to cover up the differences in vintage with oak, filtration or fining and that these differences in vintage are what makes each individual wine special.
Wines from Domaine Bruno Lorenzon are pure and elegant, with subtleties of their terroir. They are never overwhelmed by the oak barrels in which they are aged.
For you, we have selected the 2011 Domaine Bruno Lorenzon Champs Martin, Mercurey Premier Cru.
