Domaine Georges Noëllat

Looking back it seems remarkable that Maxime Cheurlin was just 19 when we bought his very first vintage just over a decade ago. Barely old enough to actually drink the fantastic appellations he had started working with. But even back then Maxime had a certain enigmatic charisma that was at odds with the average teenager. Though, to be fair, the average teenager doesn’t usually have Vosne Beaux Monts and Grands Echezeaux up their vinous sleeves!

He had an authoritative maturity about him which took one a little by surprise. Perhaps it was just because of the weight of expectation that surrounded him thanks to his vineyards and connections that forced him to adopt this grown-up persona. Perhaps he was just older and wiser than his years. His calm enthusiasm and sense of humility remain today and, although his thirtieth birthday is now well behind him and his global reputation is firmly established, there is not a trace of arrogance in his manner or his approach to the task in hand. Not only is he very likeable he has a somewhat coy sense of humour that is never very far from the surface. He often breaks into an easy and very genuine laugh in between puffs on his vape as he takes one through his now extensive range of wines be it in his expanding cellars or in his infamous porch-like tasting room that overlooks his back garden, which just happens to double up as the Vosne 1er Cru of Les Chaumes!

Born in 1991, Maxime is part of the Noëllat dynasty that has enjoyed such a rich history in Burgundy over the years. His great grandfather was Georges Noëllat who was the nephew of Charles Noëllat who, in turn, was the great great grandfather of Charles Van Canneyt (Domaine Hudelot-Noëllat). Georges’ brother married the daughter of the uncle of the legendary vigneron Henri Jayer. A complex family tree but one full of history. By the time the domaine of Georges Noëllat came on to Maxime’s radar, it consisted of 6 hectares of very old vines whose fruit was being sold off to other producers. Given his rich heritage, Maxime could not let such an opportunity slip from his grasp and thus decided to take up the challenge and bring the family domaine well and truly into the 21st century, making and bottling the wines himself.

Almost all of the vineyards were at least 80 years old and some of them had moved quietly into 3 figures. His first vintage was 2010 and we were equally excited by the challenge and persuaded Maxime to let us be his exclusive UK importer. And the rest is, as they say, history. Straight from the off Maxime avoided excessive manipulation, preferring a gentle extraction that would finesse his tannins and complement the fruit’s natural intensity which was being derived from the age of the pensionable vines. Consequently the wines have always shown a very clear sense of refinement. He has not been afraid of new oak but adapts the percentages to the individual wines and uses barrels more for texture than flavour.

Throughout the early years his reputation grew quickly and the wines gained in nuance and complexity. They perhaps reached their zenith in 2020 when Maxime produced what he feels is his best set of wines to date. Having said that, when tasting through the now quite large range of ‘22s there is not much to detect between the two vintages. This enlarged range contains a number of cuvées which include wine from vineyards that he doesn’t own but does work and harvest.

There are also wines that technically used to be domaine wines but now have a little extra fruit added from neighbours’ vineyards and therefore can’t officially be called domaine any more. Maxime had been hoping to buy some of the vineyards he was managing a couple of years ago but was outbid by someone who clearly had a limitless budget. Still, he owns around 12 hectares of vines today and farms and vinifies a further 18.