a loose moose – but not for long: faiveley, dufouleur and some musigny…

By billn on November 16, 2015 #the market

DSC08799Due to the multiple news headlines of the weekend, you would be forgiven for having missed it, but this month, for the first time in many years, a chunk of Musigny changed hands.

News of this transaction was broken by the Winespectator, just before the Hospices auction.

Anyway, The Dufouleur family were parting with a small piece of the Musigny jigsaw, and Erwan Faiveley (today, right) was waiting with open wallet.

The two producers have long had links, indeed not just are their cuveries almost next-door to each other in Nuits St.Georges, François-Xavier Dufouleur and Erwan Faiveley were also at school together.

Domaine Dufouleur Frères:
This domaine have, for a long time, been exploiting the Musigny vines of Jean Dufouleur, who died this year, over 100 years old, and leaving 14 heirs to be satisfied. I’ve profiled these young producers before, and I found their 2010s and 2012s were very promising – the 2013s proportionally less-so [Subscribers], but the ‘2013 issue’ was a symptom of the succession to come. And here we have the rub. François-Xavier Dufouleur told me yesterday (at the Hospices auction) that the family chose to sell because:

  • “We (the family) did not sell by choice but because of succession”
    (It was the death of Jean Dufouleur, owner of the vines, that triggered the transaction. He had 14 potential ‘inheritors.’)
  • “We decided to sell to a local and quality oriented producer, and for that, refused some higher financial proposals”
  • “We also obtained, by exchange, about 1 hectare of Nuits & Nuits 1er cru vines (Vignerondes), which helps to confirm our anchoring in Burgundy”

Domaine Faiveley:
And really, Faiveley are overwhelmingly a domaine today. Erwan Faiveley has been unstinting in taking every opportunity to buy-up expiring domaines – Billaud-Simon in Chablis was the last one, about 12 months ago. Let’s be honest, this transaction is certain to have been of much higher monetary value than the €1 million paid for Château de Puligny’s 0.03 hectares of Montrachet, in spite of the villages and 1er cru Nuits parcels taken by the Dufouleur family in lieu of some cash.

Have Faiveley unlimited cash? Well, that’s a good question. We should be aware that Faiveley have, very recently, sold a significant part of their family railway engineering company to US company Wabtec – a multi-billion dollar deal. Erwan notes “It’s a merger and we keep a significant ownership interest, and we also have seats on the board – but we were also able to take some cash from this transaction.” Just as well, as they also have a new cuverie project in Nuits, which begins at the end of this year. They won’t need much additional space for the produce of these vines in Musigny though.

My opinion?: I would suggest, given that such vines don’t often change hands, even once in a generation, that if you have the opportunity, and you have the means to pay, then you should not hesitate. The vines are (potentially) yours forever, just like the first vines the Faiveley family ever bought; their Nuits 1er (today) Les Porets, puchased in the 1830s…

But at least to start with, there is a small divergence of opinion:

An interesting quote from my Dufouleur domaine profile (2012):
“We are lucky to have a lot of things, and yes, we have 0.1 ha of Musigny – just 500 bottles – but it is on the limit of the vineyard next to Les Argillières – which is just Chambolle villages. Actually this Musigny is no gift for the domaine as people have such high expectations, but maybe the plant material is not the best, or it is just its position, but our Clos de Vougeot is usually better – so it’s a bit frustrating!”

DSC08801

Today’s quote from Erwan Faiveley:
“The Musigny vines are in really good shape. We already did some repiquage last week. Really, we are very happy with the work that the Dufouleur team have done with these vines in the last years.”

Of-course, Faiveley is now selling, not buying!

I’m a strong proponent of the phrase – it’s not what you pay for something, it’s what you do with it that counts. Dufouleur had no strong record in producing a small cuvée of Musigny but Faiveley have. Indeed, Faiveley are so good at it, that they even need a lock for their bespoke Musigny barrel’s bung (right) – currently big enough for 150 bottles.

It remains to be seen ‘how good are the produce of those vines’ once Faiveley start in earnest – and they already forecast producing only 60% of the number of bottles that Dufouleur used to. We will see, soon enough, how good that plot is.

Edit: Friday 20 Nov.
It takes time to tease-out occasional, additional details, but some of these are pertinent. I should add that the following doesn’t come from either of the parties involved in the transaction, and take the third point with a pinch of salt – if you want 😉

  1. Regarding the location of the vines: despite the implication(s) of some of my notes above, the vines are very well placed, in-between those of de Vogüé and Roumier, right in the middle of the vineyard, though as noted, next to Chambolle villages at the top of the vineyard.
  2. There were indeed, a number of interested potential buyers, including Leroy. Extra complications (for buyers and sellers), was the inclusion of SAFER in the negotiations, who could otherwise have vetoed any deal.
  3. Euros 5.5 million for about 2.3 ouvrées (1 ouvrée = 0.04285 hectares) 🙂

Note: Faiveley also ended up with the 2015 Musigny crop. This, I assume will need to take a négoce label as the transaction for the sale of the vines was completed only after the harvest – but let’s see. Erwan Faiveley will certainly, now, need some more barrel locks!

an hospices sunday…

By billn on November 15, 2015 #the market

Sold!
Sold!
Of-course, there wasn’t just the half-marathon in Beaune this weekend!

The auction, despite sombre reflections dedicated to those who lost their lives in Paris, started with full-blast bidding – over-exuberance? – perhaps. Security was certainly in evidence; without the right pass, or the right name to come to the door to your aid, you were not going to get your foot across entrance – and that’s just the way it has to be. There is a certain type of person that will always cause my blood to boil, and whilst waiting to get through the press door, here was one of them; somebody without any credentials was really pissed that he was being ‘held-up’ at the door – he didn’t seem to give a shit that 130 people died 36 hours before. I don’t care how expensive his shoes were – he was acting like a tosser…

The opening lots were sold for about 40% higher than the (already high) catalogue estimates. I saw barrels of Clos de la Roche going for €110,000 – that’s €375 per bottle – and that’s just to cover the hammer price; add at least 25% to reach the final price per bottle. Still, it’s charity, and it’s a lot cheaper than a Leroy, and (just) maybe the 2015s will indeed be monuments, but for anyone who lives by selling these wines, €600+ will be tough call. Likewise, barrels of Beaune were costing an unheard-of €10,000 – the Savignys not far south of that either.

Then there was the ‘President’s Lot’ – a barrel of Corton-Renardes that sold with a hammer price of €480,000 – I suppose fittingly bought by a (mystery) French buyer, as a portion of the proceeds will go to 3 charities, including the families of the Paris attack. Last year the President’s barrel went for €220,000!

At 8:00pm, when the last lots of Fine de Bourgogne were knocked down for a tenth of the price of the wines, the sale was over. In total the turnover was €11.35 million and the average price per barrel up by 37%. It seems the market is no-longer connected to prices in the auction – or at least we must very-much hope so. By 9:00pm, the chairs had already been cleared from the auditorium and most of the stalls around Place Carnot had been dismantled. Here is the press release from Christies.

By tomorrow evening, Beaune will largely be closed for the rest of the year…
 

made it…

By billn on November 14, 2015 #events

semi-1

Multiple massages and heat patches just about did the trick – save for the (should know better) sprint for the line. I was in shape to do 5 minutes faster, but made a conservative start. A super day – and lots of emotion on the start-line as everyone belted out La Marseillaise…

tada! lights, action…

By billn on November 13, 2015 #events

You’d be forgiven for thinking that Christmas has come a little too early for Beaune, but the Christmas lights (which went up, around town, in October) were switched on tonight!

Of-course, today is the first day of the ‘Les Trois Glorieuses’ – the weekend that marks the auction of the Hospices de Beaune:
 

clos de tart in the mainstream

By billn on November 12, 2015 #other sites

Image1https://t.co/VJxN0nab8N

Okay, I’m afraid it has to be in a yukky ‘luxury’ section of the mainstream news, but mainstream news it is, and that’s a rarity. Given the pricing of the wine, this categorisation as a luxury can hardly be quibbled with. Personally I’d much prefer it to appear in a ‘culture’ section; because here is something quintessentially French and with more than 1000 years of history. So be it, but ‘luxury’ adds a certain intellectual ‘baggage’ which will prevent some people from even wanting to turn that page.

It’s the smallest of domaine thumbnails by Victoria Moore, but certainly given the probable word-count constraints (the terror, not the terroir) of modern writing, this is a very nice job indeed. Merci!

want to buy 2015 hospices?

By billn on November 11, 2015 #the market

DSC08396
Time is running out if you do (of-course!)

I have this in my inbox today, and it is, I suppose, an easy (read cheap!) entry into the world of Hospices de Beaune wine – though you won’t get to see your name on the label 😉 Albert Bichot have, for the best part of 15 years (to my personal knowledge) been making great wine, arguably as good as any négoce in Beaune.

If you really must have your own name on the label, but hanker for an Australian to look after the elevage for you, drop me a line, as I may have a useful name for you 😉 just click on my name at the bottom of any page, send me a note, and I’ll put you in contact.

It goes without saying, I’ve no financial involvement of any kind with either the linked info, or any further contacts that I might suggest for you!!!

‘corkscrewed’

By billn on November 11, 2015 #the market

Half a billion dollars of fake wine are ‘out there somewhere.’ And that’s only Rudy Kurniawan’s contribution to the pot!

Really an important topic for us all…

sporting deadlines

By billn on November 10, 2015 #random

WP_20151109_14_34_41_ProAmazingly (sounds like a well-worn record…) today’s the second consecutive day for shorts and a T-shirt whilst out jogging. The last time was probably in September.

Report deadlines are not the only ones in Beaune just recently, there was also the entry for next Saturday’s Beaune 1/2 marathon last week, the day after which, something ‘popped’ in my hamstring after 85 minutes of a 90 minute run – humph! Yesterday, it was only problematic after 45 minutes of running, requiring to be stretched every 5 minutes to avoid any potential for exploding. I’m currently working on the strategy of lots of stretching, anti-inflammatorys, and that’s about it. Oh and there was some Latricières-Chambertin too – I’m sure that will help, despite being from 2004 😉

Truth be told, the hamstring’s never properly recovered since it popped during a race almost 2 years ago – that’s old age I suppose – I can go ‘forever’ at 5 minutes per km (8 minutes/mile), but wind it down to 4 mins/km and something shouts ‘stop!’ I’d love to run 1h35 on Saturday, but probably won’t finish the race (unlike the Latricières) if I go for that pace. Hmm – who wants to run 1h45 anyway? – I guess I’ll just run faster and see how long it takes to break…

Burgundy Report

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