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BURGUNDY
APPELLATION
THE DARLES IN THEIR VINEYARDS IN FRONT OF IRANCY
referred to as ‘round wines’. Or the grapes come
from a single vineyard – in Burgundy these
are known as ‘climats’ – and the name of the
vineyard block can be stated, after that of the
village. Chablis Milly is one such example.
A diminutive number of ‘climats’ are known
to be superior in quality to others, but do not
reach the level of perfection attained by the
Grands Crus. They can produce Premier Cru
appellation wines. These particular ‘climats’ are
always named after the village but the focus on
the label is on the character of the 1st growth.
For example, Chablis 1er Cru Côte de Léchet. But
they are not the topic of this article.
A final noteworthy point is that the descriptor
‘Grand Vin de Bourgogne’ applies to all wines
from Burgundy, including the village level. It
is therefore not a component of the appellation
pyramid but rather an indication that the wine
belongs to the region.
IRANCY: DOMAINE ERIC DARLES
AND ITS DISTINCTIVE WINES
THE DARLES’ WINERY
In northern Burgundy, West of Chablis – the
renowned home of white wines – is the magnificent
mediaeval village of Irancy where only red
wines are grown over 190 hectares. The clay-limestone
soils here are slightly redder. This is
the location for the estate that Eric Darles took
over in 1995 after inheriting it from his father,
and where he farms with his wife Christine. The
Darles family has been producing Irancy wines
for many generations and the present-day estate
has 12 hectares under vine.
Irancy accounts for two-thirds of its wines.
Darles stresses that one of the unique features
of the wine is that it can contain 5 to 10% of the
César variety, in mixed plantings alongside
Pinot noir. These vigorous vines are challenging
to work with and produce very tannic,
darkly-coloured grapes which Darles enjoys in
his wines. It lends them even more distinctive
typicity, and he likes the extra bottle age the
grapes provide. Ideally, his Irancy should be
28 SUMMER 2023 • GILBERT & GAILLARD - THE FRENCH EXPERTS ON WINE