2020 Seguin Manuel Givry Les Cremillons

Domaine Seguin-Manuel is on Beaune property that has been planted to vineyards for nearly 200 years. But in 2004 the domaine was purchased by Thibaut Marion, a career vigneron whose family has been in the wine business for ten generations. Marion rejuvenated the domaine, which is also a negociant, and built a new winery. He also started growing organically and now all his holdings, both estate owned and leased, are organic. The estate produces about 80,000 bottles annually. Although estate vineyards were once located only in Savigny-lès-Beaune, today there are parcels in the villages of Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet, Pommard, Meursault and Vosne-Romanée. Seguin-Manuel makes a broad portfolio of red and white wines. Wine Advocate’s reviewer noted that “I have long been a supporter of Thibaut. He is a very considered winemaker, never pushing things too much, gradually building an admirable portfolio of both domaine and contracted bottlings…”

Givry, the appellation, is in the Côte Chalonnaise region and it includes the communes of Givry, Dracy-le-Fort and Jambles. The appellation is four miles long and two miles wide and has 665 acres of vineyards, of which 250 acres are Premier Cru. Altogether there are 27 Premier Cru vineyards, including several monopoles. There are no Grand Crus. The remaining vineyard acreage is classified as Givry village. Though Givry produces both red and white wines, 80% of the wine produced is Pinot Noir. Some 1.7 million bottles of Givry appellation wines are produced annually. Clive Coates has noted that the soil of Givry is a mix of the marl and chalky limestone of northern Burgundy and the richer, sandier limestone of the Mâconnais to the south. Coates added: “The red wines of Givry can be the most charming and the most stylish of the Côte Chalonnaise, and in structure, they are midway between those of Rully and Mercurey.”

This red wine is relatively light and can pair with a wide variety of foods. The grape prefers cooler climates and the wine is most often associated with Burgundy, Champagne and the U.S. west coast. Regional differences make it nearly as fickle as it is flexible.