The story really begins with one Louis Trapet, originally from ChambolleMusigny, who married a Gevrey-Chambertin girl and subsequently moved there.
In the late 1800s, Louis’ son Arthur, great, great grandfather of Jean-Louis laid the foundations of the estate today.
With the wine industry reeling in the wake of phylloxera, he was able to acquire vineyards, confident he would be able to revitalise them using grafting.
He began with villages and at the beginning of the 20th Century, he managed to purchase some Chambertin and Latricières-Chambertin Grands Crus.
The Domaine then suffered, along with the rest of Burgundy, in the 1920s and 1930s with a very difficult market following the First World War.
Production was sold to négociants, so the family’s control over the finished wines was relinquished.
Domaine bottling, the most logical step in controlling the quality of the finished wine,
Started gradually in the 50s and became a standard by the mid-seventies. Recent history began around 1990.
At that time the estate was run by Jean Trapet and his brother-in-law, Jacques Rossignol.
In all honesty, the Domaine was well respected then but it was not wholly consistent and certainly the wines did not quite live up to the quality of the family holdings, nor the huge reputation of the 1950s and 60s.Domaine, as well respected then but it was not wholly consistent and certainly, the wines did not quite live up to the quality of the family holdings, nor the huge reputation of the 1950s and 60s.
However in 1990, Jean’s son, Jean-Louis, returned fresh from his studies in Dijon, followed by various stages in Bordeaux, Reims and California. Jean-Louis’ arrival marked the beginning of a new era as he,
with the unfaltering confidence of the recently qualified, began to question established practices, not least what he saw as over-production.
Knowing Jean-Louis, I imagine change was effected by careful, quiet reflection and courteous enquiry rather than hell-raising revolution, but profound change there was and in retrospect, it was both dramatic and courageous.
When Jacques Rossignol’s sons, David and Nicolas, also returned to work at the family Domaine, it was decided that the families should split forces, creating two independent estates: Domaine Trapet Père et Fils and Domaine RossignolTrapet.
THE VINEYARDS
Domaine Trapet today covers around 15.5 hectares of vineyards, 13.5 hectares of which they own, including an enviable collection of three Grands Crus and two Premiers Crus.
Jean-Louis took over this estate from 1990, although his father Jean still works alongside him. He took over a Domaine where tradition was entrenched in every practice.
Jean-Louis has immense respect for his forefathers but could see changes which could be made that would have wide-ranging benefits.
He began with a root and branch analysis of all of the systems and procedures, particularly concentrating on the vineyards, seeking to reinvigorate them and improve their sustainability.
Initially the changes were relatively straightforward; restricting yields to improve concentration, introducing lower yielding rootstocks and exercising a very severe de-budding regime.
Production was further curtailed by high density planting, at 12,000 vines per hectare and ultimately there was green harvesting, when required.
Herbicides were banned as was the systematic use of fertilisers. Jean-Louis ploughs between the vines to aerate the soil, circulate nutrients and keep weeds at bay, naturally.
The Trapet family have a heightened awareness of what constitutes a healthy soil base, having suffered with many other producers, from overuse of potassium in the past,
but even this experience had not prepared the family for the dramatic improvement in quality of the wines.
For Jean-Louis, this was the green light to effect the most profound cultural and philosophical change of all, when he elected to adopt biodynamic viticulture.
The initial motivation was simple and clear; to sustain the health of the vineyards and indeed, the vineyard workers. The unanticipated improvement in the intensity and purity of the wines was therefore a huge bonus.
Now fully certified by Biodyvin and Demeter, the Domaine continues under this rigorous regime and all the while Jean-Louis is still experimenting.
In particular, he is looking at massale selection and researching rootstocks to find which are better suited to his terroir.
He is also testing high wire cultivation, allowing the leaves better exposure, with resulting improvements in concentration.
In summary then, since his arrival, Jean-Louis has transformed this estate, taking the vineyards to the very highest level, the enormity of his achievements
increasingly and deservedly recognised by outside commentators.
THE CELLAR
Like many great vignerons, Jean-Louis is clear that the more he does in the vineyard to produce impeccable grapes, the less he needs to be worried about in winemaking terms.
When the harvest comes in, having already been sorted in the vineyard, it is hand-sorted once more then and de-stemmed to a degree, dependent on the vintage.
Generally there are about 25% whole bunches, which create air pockets, allowing intracellular fermentation – similar to carbonic maceration as found in Beaujolais.
The decision about the proportion of whole bunches is determined by the ripeness of the stems.
Cold maceration of between 5 and 7 days ensues, encouraging greater depth of colour and more intense aromatics, without extracting too harsh tannins.
Lightly crushed, there is then a long cuvaison, for more gentle extraction.
Fermentation is carried out in open top vats, with natural yeasts which Jean-Louis is sure, form an integral element of terroir.
Attention to detail is paramount and does not stop at the grapes themselves. The barrels are also a focus and the wood from which they are made is naturally air-dried.
The wines are aged for 15 to 18 months in barrel, the proportion of new wood depending on the wine.
The purpose of the oak, in the Trapets’ view, is to facilitate controlled oxidation of the young wines.
Generally the Premiers Crus see 20% new wood with the Grands Crus between 30% and 40% – the oak being from the Alliers and Tronçais forests.
The wines remain in cask for between 12 and 18 months before bottling.
The wines are essentially neither fined nor filtered but this depends on the vintage.
At any rate no more that 10% would ever be filtered.
Domaine Trapet
53 Route de Beaune
21220 Gevrey-Chambertin France
Phone: +33 3 80 34 30 40
