Sylvain Cathiard

Until the 2010 vintage Sylvain Cathiard presided over a small 4.5-hectare Domaine, based in Vosne-Romanee. Since then, his son Sebastien has taken over but continues to produce wines in the same style, a de-stalked crop aged, unracked, for 18 months in barrel to yield pure, sophisticated and polished Burgundies that are bottled without fining or filtration. Despite broadly keeping the same practices as his father, there is no doubting, though, that Sebastien has enhanced quality here. Yields have dropped and oak impact has reduced (the wines are aged in upwards of 50 to 70% new oak depending on the cuvée.) Greater intensity and precision in the wines is the result. Sebastien is one of the young stars of the Côte de Nuits.

2017 Vintage

“It is clear to us that Sebastien Cathiard has elevated this Domaine to an even greater level. These are among the very best 2017s we tasted. Harvest, on paper, seemed quite late here, starting on the 13th September but this just goes to show that dates are not always a safe indicator of style. Every domaine and every vineyard has its own unique situation. Sebastien is usually one of the last to pick but his wines have such crunch and vitality to them. For these are 2017s bursting with thrilling energy as well as showing density and depth. In Sebastien’s own words “It is a crunchy, fresh vintage, a really transparent year.” As usual everything was de-stalked here and ageing is 50-60% new oak for the Premiers Crus and 20-30% for the Villages

2018 Vintage

Sebastien has slipped very comfortably and confidently into the role of running the domaine since taking over from his father. Very much his own man, he has a clear focus on keeping things simple but executing with rigour. This has translated into a string of highly successful vintages. There is no greater proof of his aptitude for making great wine than in 2018. A challenging vintage in some respects, but a test Sebastien has passed with flying colours. Yet more evidence to show most definitely that he has turned this into one of the modern day great Domaines of the Côte. A large proportion of old vines and the fact Sebastien likes to reach full phenolic maturity means that harvesting began here later than most, though far from all, of his neighbours - starting on the 8th September and finishing 3 days later, on the 11th. His grapes were fresh and pristine, which you can taste in the vivid wines that resulted, and clearly were picked on the fresh side of ripe. Alcohols registered a very measured 12.8 to 13.5 degrees. He continued his policy of de-stalking and did not look to extract too much “you did not need to search for extract in 2018, it came very easily and naturally.” The wines will be raised in barrel, as usual, with as little intervention as possible – without racking – to keep the wines fresh without recourse to adding much sulphur. The wines are powerful but balanced and properly constructed. They have backbone and sufficient energy which means they will need a good full cycle of élévage. Sebastien plans to rack in preparation for bottling as usual in April. An excellent vintage here that will demand time.

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    specifications

    country:
    France
    region:
    Burgundy