2022 Domaine Joblot Givry 1er
Back in the early 90’s, I visited Domaine Joblot and have been buying them ever since. That’s a 30-year track record with this domaine!... and it’s one of a handful I will ALWAYS buy. While Givry isn’t exactly one of those appellations on everyone’s short list of must buy wines, once you discover the wines from Joblot, you may find yourself like me… not missing a vintage!
The warmer vintages the last 10 or so years have allowed the wines to ripen and I’d say they display more fruit than they once did. Accessible in their youth, the profile here is a deep red-fruited wine with excellent depth and purity but also an amazing ability to age and develop in bottle.
You could easily spend 2 times this price for half the satisfaction. The price to quality ratio on these wines make Domaine Joblot a no-brainer.
Domaine Joblot could be credited with putting Givry on the map. Located 30 or so kilometers south of Beaune, in the Côte Chalonnaise, it is an area that stood the test of time since the Bourbon age when King Henri IV favored its wines. Givry is a small village planted mostly to Pinot Noir (80%) and Chardonnay (20%) and this Joblot farms around 14 hectares of vineyards mostly in 1er Cru with the most recognized being Cellier aux Moines and Serovisine.
The caliber of the domaine’s wines is even more impressive considering its relative youth. The tale of the estate began in the mid-20th century when Charles Joblot founded the house. Following the second world war, son Marc Joblot took the reins and introduced estate bottling before handing management over to brothers Jean-Marc, wife Anne and Vincent Joblot in the 1970s. Each generation has fine-tuned the approach in the vineyard and cellar. With Vincent’s daughter Juliette now very comfortably in control it seems the wines have become that much more refined and elegant.
The philosophy throughout the winemaking process is guided by the aim of precise terroir and vintage expression. Vines see de-budding and green harvesting to keep fruit yields low and premium. Hand harvest is de rigueur and berries are meticulously sorted in the vineyard.
The majority of clusters are de-stemmed for judicious fruit and tannic balance and parcels are vinified separately with ambient yeasts to ensure an eloquent character. A trait of Joblot’s winemaking is the use of closed vats, a step that encourages concentration of the quintessential aromas and flavors of each parcel. Both red and white premier crus are aged in around 50% new oak and are bottled unfiltered, resulting in pure wines that tell the tales of their respective appellations.