Gevrey-Chambertin 1er cru « Lavaux Saint Jacques »
The Vines
This locality is certainly one of the best known in Gevrey-Chambertin. The vineyard faces south-south-east and was planted on the bedrock with about twenty centimetres of pebbles and clay soil.
There is a very particular microclimate here – very hot during the day and cold at night; the Combe de Lavaux is very close. The vines on the plot are already ancient – between 80 and 90 years old.
They are often harvested last because the grapes take longer to ripen despite prolonged exposure to the sun; freshness at night is not unusual. The vineyard covers 0.1786 hectare.
Vinification
Traditional vinification is carried out: manual harvesting; cold maceration, then fermentation with indigenous yeasts; vatting for about 15 days; maturation on the lees for 12 to 18 months in barrels, 50% of which are new wood from the Tronçais forest.
Tasting
Lavaux Saint-Jacques wines have a very deep colour, with wonderful aromatic richness. They are powerful without too much structure but with great length on the palate where elegance and fruitiness are expressed.
They can be laid down – they only improve with age – for up to ten years, or even more for great vintages.
They go wonderfully with game and raw-milk cheeses.