Bizot: The Cradle of Vins d’Emotion

A visit to Domaine Bizot is a tremendous treat and a privilege if you like me adore the kind of wines I like to call vin d’émotion.

My tasting at Domaine Bizot was therefore particularly interesting, as Jean-Yves Bizot seems to share some of the thoughts behind vins d’émotion.

I have for some time now seen Domaine Bizot as perhaps the foremost representative of producers whose wines express emotional values and qualities.

So the purpose of my visit to Domaine Bizot was to chat with him about vins d’émotion, and to discuss and perhaps even broaden my understanding of the emotional concept as a whole. This is a complex concept, and it’s important to discuss these things with broad-minded and competent people like Jean-Yves Bizot.

I will write more about our discussion of emotional wines when I have had the opportunity to reflect and synthesise (even this does happen from time to time).

The tasting

I don’t taste Bizot very much as the prices (on any market to which I have access) are a challenge for me, to say at least.

It’s therefore always interesting to gauge the Bizot wines against other top-end Vosne producers to see if they still match up – or even outrank – some other well-known names. What’s more, to claim them as the reference for the vin d’émotion concept does require a good knowledge of the wines in recent years.

A uniquely small vintage

The Bizot harvest in 2020 was very modest – the smallest that Jean-Yves has experienced since beginning his career in the mid-1990s.

It is, however, a very exciting vintage here, with quite a cool expression for such a warm year. It gives some very clear displays of terroir which I find fascinating.

It’s difficult for me to understand how Bizot will be able to apportion this small harvest without someone being unhappy – either with prices or allocation. But such is life.

As always, tasting the Bizot wines requires the ability to look through or past the new oak, as its expression can become (to some) a bit intrusive. However, after I wrote the text below, I noticed that I did not mention the oak once, and this reflects how I taste the wines – just as I rarely comment on the oak in the Liger-Belair wines. Make no mistake though: These are wines with ample use of oak. As well, the Bizot wines are dominated by whole-cluster grapes (100%); again, it’s there, but is a well-integrated part of the wine.

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Domaine Bizot Vosne-Romanée 2020

The Vosne-Romanée (regular cuvée) has a beautiful mineral touch; it’s intense, yet very precise and quite forwardly expressive. Lovely Vosne spices mix with a delightful floral note and strong minerality to power the wine. It has the signature of a perfect Bizot Vosne village. While not implying 1er cru, it gives a unique, lively expression of Vosne characteristics.

(Drink From 2031) – Fine (91-92p) – Tasted On 30/11/2021 –

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