Albert Bichot - B as in Burgundy | Meininger's International

A Burgundian enterprise must reflect the diversity and the long tradition of Burgundy in its wines. The renowned house Albert Bichot is a perfect example: Six generations of experience and four vineyards with 100 hectares of land in total - up to Grand Cru.

Beaune + Bichot = Burgundy. This equation summarises well what the Southern wine metropolis of the Côte d’Or has in common with one of the enterprises with the longest tradition: Burgundy. Since 1831, when Bernard Bichot founded its business in the small town of Monthélie south of Beaune, five generations have given their all to expand the Burgundy competence. Forty-Seven-year-old Albéric Bichot, who has managed the company since 1996 as the representative of the sixth generation, can look back with some pride on four own domains in the four core areas of Burgundy, because a large part of the ambitious quality policy at Bichot is based on his initiative. Albert Bichot is both a company as well as a small empire of vineyards.

An important step on the road to today’s identity was the relocation of the company to Beaune by Albert Bichot, the grandson of the founder and namesake of the company. This is where the heart of Albert Bichot beats. The four vineyards in Chablis (Domaine Long-Depaquit, 65 hectares), at the Côte de Nuits (Domaine du Clos Frantin, 13 hectares), the Côte de Beaune (Domaine du Pavillon in Pommard, 17 hectares), and at the Côte Chalonnaise (Domaine Adélie in Mercurey, 4.5 hectares) are each a small jewel. They also include renowned locations, some of which are only owned by this company.

In Chablis, Albert Bichot purchased the Domaine Long-Depaquit - which is actually a real castle from the 18th century with wonderful gardens and an orangerie - which added 10% of the Grand Cru areas of the appellation to the holdings of Albert Bichot, including the monopoly location La Moutonne as well as land parcels in the Grands Crus areas of Les Vaudésirs, Les Clos, Les Blanchots, Les Preuses and Bougros. The Domaine du Clos Frantin in Nuits-Saint-Georges includes, among others, the Grand Cru locations Richebourg, Chambertin, Clos-de-Vougeot, Grands-Echezeaux and Echezeaux, of which the Domaine du Pavillon in Pommard is fully owned by the company, includes the Grand Cru location Corton “Clos des Maréchaudes”, monopoly of the house. When considering these names, which make every connoisseur’s mouth water, it becomes clear that Albert Bichot not only has ambitious goals, but also bears an important responsibility. Locations such as these are basically “system relevant”; their wines must uphold the high reputation of Burgundy.

The company’s CEO and its head cellar master Alain Serveau are well aware of this responsibility. Some vineyards are almost 60 years old such as the one in Clos des Ursulines in Pommard; the average age of the vines is 30 years. The greatest respect for nature is shown in all vineyards. For example, in Domaine du Clos Frantin, the vineyard uses compost and the good, old plough instead of using artificial fertilizers and herbicides. The historic manor gives little indication that the cellar is operated in accordance with the most modern techniques: Gravity alone is indispensable to transport the grape harvest to prevent mechanical exposure to pumps. Sustainability is an important cultivation aspect.

Any additionally purchased grapes are thoroughly checked for optimum quality. This way, Albert Bichot can offer products from renowned Burgundian Grands and Premiers Crus in addition to the top locations it owns itself. These include, for example, the red Grands Crus Romanée-Saint-Vivant, Clos de la Roche, Bonnes Mares and Charmes-Chambertin or the white Montrachet, Bâtard-Montrachet and Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet. And speaking of white wines: Almost half of the vineyard area in Côte de Beaune is planted with Chardonnay. Albert Bichot therefore has a great deal of competence in white wines, which was impressively confirmed in 2011 with the “white wine maker of the year” award, given out by the International Wine Challenge.

All this is conducive to the clarity of the fruit and the typicity of the wines by Albert Bichot, which long ago earned an excellent reputation in gastronomy throughout the world. The wines are typical for Burgundy, which is so rich in various terroirs: each has a different character. “It is not about giving our wines a certain house style, but rather, about enabling them to reflect the terroir and the location of their origin”, Albéric Bichot explained.

The fact that the family continues to pursue its goal to reflect the tradition and diversity of Burgundy as comprehensively as possible is demonstrated by the purchase of the latest vineyard, the Domaine Adélie in Mercurey (2005). The name reflects the youngest daughter of the Bichot family, who was born in 2003. Albéric Bichot is certain that the family motto will continue to be upheld: “We have been sharing our family heritage for six generations. Considering that the family’s roots go back to the year 1350, there can hardly be any doubt about that.”