Domaine Lejeune Wine Tour
Today we visited Domaine Lejeune in Pommard Burgundy France. This is a fantastic tour! The 90+ minute tour was free. We started with the barrel room, getting an explanation of their picking, sorting, crushing and fermenting of the grapes. Everything is done by hand, the crushing by foot and hand crushers.
Domaine Lejeune: “This family domaine, which traces its ancestry back as far as 1783, nestles amongst the recently renovated buildings of the charitable Brotherhood of the Saint Sacrement. Secularization imposed by the Revolutionary Government after the French Revolution meant the buildings were sold in 1793. For five generations Domaine Lejeune passed from aunt to niece. It takes its name from Maxime LEJEUNE, and at the time of his death in 1864 it amounted to over 50 acres. It now belongs to the Jullien de Pommerol family. François Jullien de Pommerol (former oenology professor at Beaune’s Lycée Viticole) takes charge of the wineyard and the winemaking. The cellar boasts many large, traditional oak fermentation vats, one of which, encircled by 17 hoops of white birch, is the oldest of its kind in the entire Burgundy region.”
Next we visited the cellar where the wine is aged for two years before bottling. The chateau also stores wine, previously purchased, for people throughout France. The oldest bottle currently stored is 1976.
We finished with a wine tasting. The tasting takes place in the bottling/labeling room. We tasted 4 whites, 3 reds and a liqueur. The reds included 2 Premier Crus that were outstanding!
You should reserve your tour ahead of time by emailing the vineyard. The address is on their website. http://www.domaine-lejeune.fr/english.htm.
Attire is smart casual, pants, sweaters or long sleeve shirt.
Although many vineyards in Burgundy France do not charge for a tour, it is customary to buy some wine when you finish the tour. The wine here is very reasonable, prices ranging from €7,90 Euro for whites and as high as €48 Euro for their 2015 Premier Cru (very reasonable price for this wine).
The wines tasted are as follows:
– Bourgogne Chardonnay 2015
– Côte de Beaune Les Monsnières 2015
– Meursault Les Grands Charrons 2015
– Saint Aubin 1er Cru Les Frionnes 2015
– Pommard Village Les Trois Follots 2015
– Pommard 1er Cru Les Poutures 2015
– Pommard 1er Cru Les Argillières 2015
You will find reviews of these wines in future postings.
I highly recommend this tour if you are in Beaune or Pommard.