d'Heilly-Huberdeau

Domaine d'Heilly-Huberdeau - a winemaking adventure

The estate on which Domaine d'Heilly-Huberdeau was created is a typical vineyard. The cellars and barns have been used by local winegrowers for several generations to store wines, but also to house draft horses. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, most of the wines produced here were destined for the mining area.

During the 1970s, Martine and Pierre met at the University of Rennes. They were studying ecology and became aware of future environmental challenges and the impact of human practices on nature and biodiversity. When the opportunity arose to settle in Burgundy in an agricultural and farming environment, the adventure of viticulture came naturally. in 1978, they combined their family names to create Domaine d'Heilly-Huberdeau. The first harvest in 1979 was harvested on less than one hectare of vineyards. Gradually, Pierre and Martine planted Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Aligoté grape varieties to increase the acreage.

In parallel, they were committed to the emergence and development of organic farming unions and services in Burgundy and nationally. Their philosophy is to practice viticulture based on the latest scientific knowledge about the microbiology of the soil and respecting life. Together with colleagues and friends, they want to promote a sustainable, realistic and scientific agriculture. in 1983, they join Nature & Progrès, a progressive association that allows certification as an organic farm.

in 1986, the first bottles of Crémant are produced. At that time, production was done on a contract basis, and in 1995 the "Atelier Crémant" was created on the estate. Since then, all the crémants on the estate are made according to the traditional method, which goes back to the know-how of Champagne. The harvest of the grapes, the assemblage of the wines, the formation of the foam with at least nine months of rest on the latte and the disgorgement take place on the estate.

In the 2000s, Pierre and Martine manage 5 hectares of vineyards, all of which they planted themselves. Organic farming is slowly developing and European instances are emerging. The certification of the winery is then entrusted to the organization ECOCERT. in 2019, Lucas, son of Martine and Pierre, decides to join the adventure created by his parents, out of pride for the work done, but above all for the love of the vines and the wine. He has settled on the estate with his wife Alizée and their daughter Suzanne.

In 2020, Domaine d'Heilly-Huberdeau adopts a new name: "Domaine du Chétif Quart", the name of the place where it is located, as a reference to Burgundy defined by its climatic zones.

Burgundy - home of d'Heilly-Huberdeau

The Côte Chalonnaise is a unique area in the Burgundy region. It stretches for 35 kilometers between the Mâconnais in the south and the Côte de Beaune in the north.

The landscape is varied and consists of meadows, cultivated land and vineyards interrupted by hedgerows, groves and strips of woodland, creating a multitude of vistas. The settlements are distributed in hamlets in the valley hollows and extend along the roads. In this harmonious ensemble, the vineyards spread out, accentuating the slopes and curves. The soils are predominantly clay and limestone.

In the heart of the Côte Chalonnaise, our winery is located in Cercot (hamlet of the municipality of Moroges), at the village of Chétif Quart, at the foot of Mont Avril, a 421 m high nature reserve.

d'Heilly-Huberdeau cultivates 5 hectares of vineyards in the communes of Moroges, Jambles and Givry. The majority of the vineyards are located in the immediate vicinity of the winery, on the slopes of Mont-Avril, at an altitude of between 300 and 400 meters with south/southeast exposure. Four grape varieties are planted today:

• Pinot Noir
• Gamay
• Chardonnay
• Aligoté

Organic farming through and through

Since the creation of our winery in 1978, d'Heilly-Huberdeau has cultivated its vineyards according to the rules of organic farming. In traditional planting, we cultivate low vines with a distance between the vines of 1.2 meters. This type of planting makes the specificity and uniqueness of the Burgundy wine region. It has not been copied much throughout the new wine world, as it is particularly cumbersome and labor-intensive. This type of cultivation was taken directly from the use of the horse for plowing. 4 of the 5 hectares are cultivated in this way.

The remaining hectare is planted with tall and wide vines. At the time of their establishment, this type of cultivation seemed to Pierre and Martine to be the most favorable for the implementation of organic farming. This planting system makes it possible to maintain a stronger and better controlled green cover, effectively combating erosion, which is a major problem in all vineyards on slopes. Due to the lower density of vines, the soil microbiology is richer on these plots.

Some of the plots with low vines are partially grassed all year round or temporarily to avoid mud deposits, but also to maintain a better microbial life. d'Heilly-Huberdeau lightly cultivate their soils with hydraulic hoes and supplement them manually (hoeing from April to June and sometimes thermal weeding). The planting canes for the vineyard are made from their own acacia wood. The fertilization is low. It is mainly made from composted manure or grape pomace or organic biofertilizers.

The vineyards were pruned from 1979 to 2006 using the simple Guyot method. Since 2007, d'Heilly-Huberdeau has switched to the Guyot-Poussard method, a pruning that better respects sap flow, to try to contain the spread of wood diseases. The vines harvested after pruning are crushed on site in the vineyards. In July, a green harvest is carried out on some plots in order to select the grapes and limit the yields for a better quality of our wines. The harvest is done exclusively by hand.