French wine Magazine Bourgogne Aujourd'hui has named Pousse d'Or as its producer of the year!

Domaine de la Pousse d’Or – Nine Centuries in Volnay

Arguably the finest and most prestigious Burgundy house in Volnay, Domaine de la Pousse d’Or has now been in existence since the 1100s, when the Duchy of Burgundy held all the titles in the land. It was originally called Bousse d’Or or ‘Golden Earth’ in middle French (the name is commemorated in their flagship wine Clos de la Bousse d’Or,) but over time the word evolved to its current iteration. By the 19th century it had become part of a larger domaine which also encompassed other reputable properties as Romanée-Conti and Clos de Tart. But without proper maintenance and over time the domain fell into disrepair, a shame considering the potential for such regal winemaking it possesses.

It was eventually Gérard Potel who resurrected Domaine de la Pousse d’Or to its glory. In 1964 Potel acquired the domaine through a marriage to the then owner’s neice. He unified the two properties in Volnay into one 17-hectare nucleus, where Pousse d’Or is headquartered today. With his untimely death in 1997 the domaine passed into the hands of the current winemaker, Patrick Landanger. Landanger decided to pass on bottling his first two vintages (1997 & 1998) and devoted himself to land acquisition. To the parcels in Volnay he added a 20-hectare slice of Corton Bressandes and 3 hectares of Grand Cru Corton Clos du Roi. In 2004 he added 28 hectares of Puligny Montrachet Les Caillerets, followed by parcels of Chambolle Musigny (Bonne Mares, Amoureuses, Feusselottes, and Groseilles) and finally 12 hectares of Clos de la Roche. His first vintage for his Cote de Nuits wines was 2009. 

Diligent green harvest and selection leads to very low yields. Mechanical sorting precedes manual sorting, and then the grapes are destemmed. Some biodynamic practices. All wines are unfined and unfiltered. Pousse d’Or has three 1er cru monopoles in Volnay: Clos de la Bousse d’Or, Clos d’Audignac, and Clos des Soixante Ouvrées. They also make a 1er Cru Santenay Clos des Tavannes (a 2 ha parcel on the Chassagne border,) 1er cru Pommard (Les Jarolllières) and two grand cru Cortons.

Wine sees a week of cold soak then three weeks maceration. Then the wines go into 30% new oak and are bottled 15-18 months later depending on the vintage.