Domaine DUJAC Echezeaux Grand Cru 2024

Domaine DUJAC Echezeaux Grand Cru 2024

Domaine Dujac Échezeaux Grand Cru 2024 is a red Burgundy from a single block in the Champs Traversins section of Échezeaux, in Vosne-Romanée. Made from 100% Pinot Noir on thin, stony soils over hard limestone, it combines the site’s elegance, floral lift and mineral precision with Dujac’s whole-bunch, low-intervention style and the freshness of the challenging 2024 vintage.

Technical Details

• Producer: Domaine Dujac, Morey-Saint-Denis, Côte de Nuits, Burgundy, France

• Wine: Échezeaux Grand Cru

• Appellation: Échezeaux Grand Cru, Vosne-Romanée, Côte de Nuits

• Vintage: 2024

• Grape variety: 100% Pinot Noir

• Vineyard: Échezeaux, Champs Traversins

• Domaine holding: 0.69 hectares, approximately 1.7 acres

• Vineyard location: West and southwest of Clos de Vougeot, at the mouth of the Combe d’Orveau valley

• Vineyard position: Single block in Champs Traversins

• Altitude: 277–281 metres

• Aspect: Southeast-facing

• Average slope: 6.5%

• Soil: Reddish-brown, 40–50 cm deep, with light-coloured limestone fragments and chert nodules (chailles)

• Subsoil: Premeaux limestone

• Harvest: Manual

• Fermentation: 100% whole-bunch fermentation

• Yeasts: Indigenous

• Ageing: Approximately 14–18 months in French oak barrels

• Oak regime: Approximately 70% new oak

• Bottle size: 750 ml

• Release status: Not yet ready for release; en primeur allocation wine

• Serving temperature: 15–17°C once mature

The Producer

Domaine Dujac is one of Burgundy’s most respected estates, founded in 1967 by Jacques Seysses and now led by the Seysses family. The domaine is known for perfumed, finely structured Pinot Noirs that emphasize terroir transparency, aromatic complexity and elegance.

Dujac acquired its Échezeaux holding in 1969, a 0.69-hectare block in the Champs Traversins climat. The estate has farmed its vines organically since 2001, and its Échezeaux is recognized for its delicate, refined and floral expression of the appellation.

Vineyard and Terroir

Échezeaux lies to the west and southwest of Clos de Vougeot, at the mouth of the Combe d’Orveau valley. Dujac’s parcel sits in the Champs Traversins section, at 277–281 metres on a southeast-facing slope with a 6.5% gradient.

The soil is thin—40 to 50 centimetres deep—and composed of reddish-brown earth with light-coloured limestone fragments and chert nodules known as chailles. Beneath it lies Premeaux limestone, contributing to the site’s mineral tension and the wine’s fine, chalky structure.

The 2024 Vintage

The 2024 Burgundy growing season was exceptionally difficult, with heavy rainfall, cool temperatures and widespread mildew pressure. Frost, hail and disease pressure made the growing season particularly challenging for Pinot Noir, and yields fell dramatically in the worst-affected parcels.

Despite these difficulties, careful fruit selection and meticulous vineyard work allowed producers such as Dujac to retain the freshness, aromatic definition and fine tannic structure that define the vintage. The resulting reds are expected to be lighter in weight than riper recent years, but precise, energetic and highly transparent.

Winemaking and Ageing

Dujac’s Pinot Noir is hand-harvested and vinified with 100% whole bunches, a hallmark of the estate’s style. Fermentation uses indigenous yeasts and lasts around two weeks, beginning with light pigeage and later gentle remontage for a softer extraction.

After pressing, the wine is moved by gravity to the cellar and aged for approximately 14–18 months in French oak barrels. The 2024 Échezeaux was matured in approximately 70% new oak, selected well in advance to ensure proper seasoning and subtle integration.

Tasting Profile

As a cask sample, the 2024 Échezeaux was described by Jancis Robinson as mid-pale ruby, with a red-fruited profile and 100% whole-bunch fermentation contributing to its aromatic lift and structural finesse. The wine is expected to show the floral, elegant character typical of Dujac’s Échezeaux.

Expect red cherry, wild strawberry, raspberry, rose petal, violet, sweet spice and subtle earthy notes. The palate should be medium-bodied, silky yet structured, with fine-grained tannins, vibrant acidity and a long, mineral finish.

Aroma and flavour: red cherry, wild strawberry, raspberry, rose petal, violet, sweet spice, forest floor, subtle earth and mineral notes.

Palate: medium-bodied, elegant and refined, with fine tannins, vibrant acidity, layered red fruit and a long, chalky finish.

Style: a perfumed, age-worthy Grand Cru Pinot Noir—delicate yet precise, with Dujac’s signature whole-bunch lift and the cool-vintage tension of 2024.

Drinking Window

As an unreleased 2024 Grand Cru, this is primarily a cellaring wine. It should benefit from several years in bottle after release, allowing its tannins, oak and aromatic complexity to integrate.

A realistic drinking window is likely to begin around 2030–2034 and extend for two decades or more under good cellar conditions. Serve it initially at 15–17°C and allow it plenty of air to open.

Food Pairing

Once mature, pair it with roast duck, pheasant, guinea fowl, venison, lamb or beef in a light red-wine sauce. Its acidity and fine tannins also suit mushroom-based dishes, truffle preparations and semi-aged cheeses such as Époisses, Comté or Cîteaux.

Avoid very spicy or heavily smoked dishes, which can overwhelm the wine’s delicate fruit, floral aromatics and fine structure.

Collector Note

This is a rare allocation wine from one of Burgundy’s most sought-after producers, made from a single block in the Champs Traversins climat of Échezeaux. Dujac’s Échezeaux is produced in limited quantities, and the dramatically reduced yields of the 2024 vintage are likely to make availability especially tight.

The combination of Dujac’s reputation, the limestone-rich Champs Traversins terroir and the freshness of the 2024 vintage makes this a compelling long-term proposition for collectors of age-worthy red Burgundy.

Recommended serving: after several years of cellaring, open and decant for 1–2 hours before serving at 15–17°C; use a large Burgundy glass to allow its perfume and layered fruit to unfold.

Vineyard notes:

"The Grand Cru of Les Échezeaux lies to the west and southwest of the Clos de Vougeot, at the mouth of the Combe d'Orveau valley, where the slope is steep (6.5%). The plot ranges in altitude from 277 to 281 meters. The lieu-dit faces southeast. The reddish-brown soil is 40 to 50 cm thick, with light-colored limestone fragments and chert nodules (chailles). The substratum underlying Les Échezeaux is very probably composed of Premeaux limestone."

Classification

Grand Cru

Drinking Window

2028-2055

Ageing

The wines will spend 14 to 18 months in oak barrels. We buy the wood two years in advance to guarantee sufficient drying time for the quality of our barrels. Elevage plays a key role in refining the tannins, which is why we use a significant proportion of new wood.

Winemakin

Our grapes are vinified with little or no destemming, depending on the nature of the vintage. Only indigenous yeasts are used to preserve the authentic origin of the wines. Fermentation lasts about two weeks with some light punching down at the start, then pumping over for a smoother extraction towards the end of fermentation. The main concern is the balance between firmness and suppleness for the tannins. After being lightly pressed in a pneumatic press, the wines are transferred to the cellar by gravity.