Domaine de Cassiopée

History of Domaine de Cassiopée

The story of Domaine de Cassiopée begins in January 2020, when Talloulah Dubourg and Hugo Mathurin, a young couple of passionate oenologists, seized the opportunity to take over a little-known wine estate in Sampigny-lès-Maranges. This commune in Saône-et-Loire, located at the far southern end of the Côte de Beaune, offered them exactly what they were looking for: a cool terroir, capable of producing the pure, straight and energetic wines they love to drink, at a time when climate change is disrupting the traditional Burgundian equilibrium.

Before creating their own domaine, the two winemakers honed their expertise with the greatest. Hugo Mathurin worked at Jean-Marc Roulot and then Frédéric Mugnier, before taking on the technical directorship of the Beaune viticultural college for two years. Talloulah Dubourg, for her part, passed through Clos de Tart, négociant Benjamin Leroux and the domaine of Marie-Thérèse Chappaz in the Swiss Valais. The name of the domaine evokes the constellation of Cassiopeia, a celestial landmark that has guided travellers since time immemorial, reflecting the couple's deep commitment to viticultural practices that respect natural rhythms. In just a few vintages, Domaine de Cassiopée has established itself as one of the most exciting emerging names in Burgundy.

Terroirs and Vineyards of Domaine de Cassiopée

The vineyard of Domaine de Cassiopée spans 5 hectares spread across eight plots scattered over six lieux-dits, straddling the appellations Maranges, Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Beaune and Bourgogne régionale, with a few vines located in Chassey-le-Camp. Dominated by the Montagne des Trois Croix, the Maranges appellation is the most southerly and least known in the Côte de Beaune. Its cooler climate, accentuated by the steep hillsides, valleys and wild copses, delays the harvest by ten to fifteen days compared to Meursault or Puligny-Montrachet — a precious signature for preserving the freshness and tension of the wines.

The soils combine classic clay-limestone and rarer granitic rocks, an unusual geological configuration that lends the wines of Domaine de Cassiopée a saline minerality and a particular tannic grain. The vines, often between 50 and 110 years old, thrive on hillsides with easterly, south-westerly or north-easterly exposures depending on the plot. From the moment they took over the domaine, Talloulah and Hugo initiated the conversion to organic farming, now certified, and apply certain principles of biodynamics, in particular the respect of the lunar calendar for rackings and bottling. Vineyard work is carried out with extreme attention paid to biodiversity, the surrounding hedgerows and the forests that encircle the plots.

Vinifications at Domaine de Cassiopée

The winemaking philosophy of Domaine de Cassiopée rests on a simple principle: intervene as little as possible to let each terroir speak for itself. Each of the eight plots is vinified separately, giving rise to single-parcel cuvées that reveal the singular identity of each lieu-dit. Fermentations take place solely with the indigenous yeasts present on the grapes, without any external addition. For the reds, the use of whole clusters varies according to the cuvées and vintages, generally between 15% and 45%, in order to bring finesse, aromatic freshness and an airy tannic structure.

The ageing process is delicate and generally lasts twelve months, sometimes longer for the most structured cuvées. The couple favours large-format older barrels, amphorae and stoneware jars, in order to avoid any woody imprint and to preserve the purity of the fruit. The lunar calendar guides the racking and bottling operations. The wines are neither fined nor filtered. Sulphur is used only in infinitesimal quantities, or not at all, with a very light dose added at bottling only when deemed necessary. This minimally interventionist approach produces wines of remarkable transparency, vibrant, energetic and imbued with a saline minerality that is the hallmark of the domaine.

The Cuvées of Domaine de Cassiopée

Bourgogne Aligoté Mitancherie: sourced from a 0.5-hectare plot with an easterly exposure above Cheilly-lès-Maranges, planted on clay-limestone soils formerly considered too cold for the vine. The aligoté vines, around thirty years old, yield a taut, fresh and expressive white wine, showing white and yellow fruits, with a beautiful mineral length.

Bourgogne Aligoté En Gerlieus: this cuvée comes from an isolated plot in Chassey-le-Camp, surrounded by forests, where the aligoté is planted on vines aged between 40 and 100 years. Vinified approximately 40% in amphorae and 60% in barrels, it delivers an aligoté of great complexity, at once pure, saline and deep — one of the finest expressions of the grape variety in Burgundy.

Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Beaune Blanc Les Côtes: this chardonnay flourishes across two plots facing each other on the "cold hillside", one on limestone bedrock, the other on granitic substrate, with a north-east exposure. The wine combines crystalline tension, fine floral notes and the smoky minerality characteristic of granite, in an airy and precise style.

Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Beaune Rouge Les Côtes: pinot noir grown on granitic rock, entirely destemmed. This cuvée is distinguished by a powerful mineral expression, aromas of fresh red fruits, a fine texture and beautiful depth. The stony, smoky character of the granite is particularly legible here.

Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Beaune Les Paizets: pinot noir planted on classic clay-limestone soil, on the same cold hillside as Les Côtes, just above it. The vines of approximately 50 years, planted at a slightly reduced density, yield an elegant, lifted wine, showing small red fruits, with a lively freshness and a delicate grain.

Bourgogne Rouge En Gerlieus: sourced from 0.9 hectares in Chassey-le-Camp, planted just beside the aligoté of the same name, on a north-east facing hillside. The pinot noir vines, aged between 50 and 70 years, yield a concentrated, deep and textured wine, marked by a cool-climate expression of the fruit and a stony minerality calling for cellaring.

Maranges Le Saugeot: a cuvée born from a lease recovered in 2021 in the Cirque de Dezize, a plot shaped like an ancient amphitheatre overlooking the village of Sampigny-lès-Maranges. This pinot noir seduces with its airy finesse, notes of small red and black fruits, and a palate that is both generous and taut.

Maranges Le Bas du Clos: a plot located just behind the domaine's house, planted with 90-year-old pinot noir vines, south-west facing on clay-limestone soil. Always harvested first, it yields a rich, balanced Maranges of evident purity, whose old vines impart a refined intensity and a remarkable length.

Maranges Les Plantes: the flagship and rarest cuvée of the domaine, sourced from century-old vines (110 years old) planted in the most recognised zone of the Maranges appellation. This exceptional pinot noir offers a silky and deep palate, an explosion of wild small red fruits, a complete structure and a superior ageing potential, the fruit of an extended élevage to reveal its full complexity.