Didier Desvignes Vigneron
Didier Desvignes is a winemaker to the hilt. He is continuing the work started out over a century ago by his family. His passion started to show when he was only eleven when he was caught pruning the vines. This was also when he started trying to find aromas in the wines at family tastings. One day, his father challenged him by allowing him to vinify the latest vintage in the cellar. This first experience was a revelation to him and something of a success…
At that time he already wanted to cultivate his own vines… So, in 1981, he bought his first land in Morgon called Le Domaine du Calvaire De Roche Grès. This interesting name comes from the presence of thirteen monumental standing stone Stations of the Cross dating from the beginning of 20th century that are set in the vines.
From then on his attachment to and respect for the vines, his passion and rigour grew and have contributed to developing very high quality.
Didier Desvignes sees vinification as the means to express the best of his terroirs. This is why he vinifies each plot separately, revealing each one’s individual finesse and personality.
Reliable, refined wines – Vinification is used to bring out the most elegant expression of the terroirs, finding the best balance between alcohol, acidity and mellowness. For Morgon vinification gives aromatic intensity and the tannins that make them excellent wines to lay down while for Chiroubles and Fleurie it gives wines with powerful, rounded bodies and great aromas.
The purity of the aromas – Every year Didier Desvignes asserts his preference for clearcut fruit aromas that are delicately extracted using heat assisted maceration. To meet this requirement for aromatic purity the wines are often aerated in the cellar that is kept perfectly clean.
The subtle harmony between wood and wine – The wines meet with oak barrels during malo-lactic fermentation. Didier is convinced that time in the barrel gives additional and new aromatic complexity. He nevertheless looks for a harmonious blend between the aromas of the wood and the wine.