The SOMM Journal

October / November 2016

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{ bourgogne } The first thing you notice are the bright blue glasses, closely followed by the broad, bright smile just below. If there were a prize for first impressions, Marie- France Largeot of Domaine Daniel Largeot would certainly be in the running for the gold medal, but it was for her winemaking skills that she was voted the best winemaker in the Côte de Beaune in 2006, somewhat to the disgruntle - ment, she adds with grin, of some of her male colleagues in this still male- dominated profession. The achievement was all the more remarkable seeing that the award was for the wines she had made in 2004, barely a year after Marie-France, and her husband Rémi, had taken over the 13-hectare (32-acre) estate following the death of her father. We're in the village of Chorey-lès-Beaune, a relatively little-known appella - tion of the Côte de Beaune in Bourgogne. Just a few kilometres away are much more famous appellations such as Beaune, Aloxe-Corton, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru and several others. Wary of being overlooked by wine lovers who didn't look beyond these world-famous names, many vignerons in Chorey-lès- Beaune used to purchase a few hectares of vines in the more famous Village appellations whenever the opportunity presented itself, and it's common now for them to have vineyards in half a dozen, or more, appellations. Domaine Maillard Père et Fils, managed by Pascal Maillard, and Domaine Arnoux Père et Fils, managed by Pascal Arnoux, are two cases in point with estates of 19 and 22 hectares respectively, less than half of which are in Chorey. This makes even more sense when one realizes how small Chorey-lès-Beaune actually is: just 133 hectares (329 acres) in total, all planted with Pinot Noir, except for nine hectares (22 acres) devoted to white wine from Chardonnay. SOMETIMES OVERLOOKED, CHOREY-LÈS-BEAUNE OFFERS A LOT TO LIKE by Jiles Halling / photos by Eric Vandenbossche Marie-France Largeot—full of energy and character, just like her wines. Unheralded Excellence Les Beaumonts— no higher than a mole hill. 74 { THE SOMM JOURNAL } OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2016

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