Domaine du Comte Liger-Belair possesses a distinguished pedigree dating back to Napoleonic General Louis Liger-Belair in 1815. Nevertheless, the status and reputation of the Domaine today as one of the foremost estates in Burgundy, is almost entirely the creation of the General’s lineal descendant, Comte Louis-Michel Liger-Belair.
Louis-Michel took the reins of the family estate in 2000 with a mere 1.5 ha of vineyards to work with. He has gradually recovered more of the family’s holdings, and has assembled and bought more, and currently manages over 10 hectares of prime vineyards.
They don’t use any herbicides, and since 2002, part of the vineyard has been plowed by horse-drawn plows. Biodynamic farming has been practiced on the entire estate since 2008 and the estate is certified by Ecocert under the Biodyvin label.
Louis-Michel was much influenced by his tutor and family friend, Henri Jayer, but the Comte has since found his own voice and style. In general, the fruit is picked at full maturity, scrupulously sorted, completely de-stemmed, then cooled and held below 15 C. for a week. Following fermentation, during which there is periodic pumping over, the wine is aged 12-15 months, predominantly in new oak, then assembled and bottled after 60-90 additional days in tank, without fining or filtration.
APPELLATIONS: Vosne-Romanée; Flagey-Échezeaux; Nuits-Saints-George
