Guy Bocard

The History of Domaine Guy Bocard

The Bocard family’s winemaking history predates the Meursault appellation, recognized in 1937. In the 1920s, Charles Bocard, Guy’s grandfather, founded the family estate. His son, also named Charles, took it over around 1950. He replanted the vineyards with chardonnay, began bottling his wines and sold them directly to customers. In 1976, Guy Bocard took over and established his own estate. He bought several plots in Meursault and took on his father’s vineyards. In 1987, he built a modern winery at 4 rue de Mazeray, where he also excavated the estate’s cellars.

For nearly fifty years, Guy Bocard shaped a style both generous and precise, earning several favorites awards from the Guide Hachette. In 2018, the Derichebourg family bought the property. With Guy’s support, they immediately began converting it to organic farming; he oversaw production until his retirement. Since 2022, winemaker Philippe Pacalet has advised the team and defined the new winemaking style.

Terroirs and Vineyards of Domaine Guy Bocard

Today the vineyards cover 5.6 hectares devoted exclusively to white wines: mostly chardonnay, with a little aligoté. All the plots are in Meursault except for one Auxey-Duresses 1er Cru Les Reugnes vineyard at the entrance to the neighboring valley. These climats offer varied exposures and soils. High on the slope, on steep, stony ground such as Les Narvaux, grapes ripen slowly and retain their tension. In the heart of the slope, at Limozin, Charmes or Genevrières, the grapes are more sun-ripened and richer.

Conversion to organic farming began in 2019, and the estate has been certified since the 2022 vintage. The soils are worked in a way that respects the distinct character of each terroir. The grapes are harvested by hand at full ripeness. Philippe Pacalet also advises the estate on vine selection for future plantings.

Winemaking at Domaine Guy Bocard

Under Philippe Pacalet’s guidance, winemaking aims above all for purity. The grapes undergo a long whole-cluster pressing. Alcoholic and malolactic fermentations then take place in barrels, using only indigenous yeasts. Bâtonnage, which stirs the lees back into suspension, is limited, and sulfur is used sparingly. Every cuvée is vinified in the same way, allowing the terroir alone to make the difference.

Aging takes place in a variety of French oak barrels, with little new oak. It lasts at least twelve months and varies by cuvée, sometimes with a few additional months in stainless steel. The wines develop a generous texture while retaining their precision, acidity and saline finish.

The cuvées of Domaine Guy Bocard

Bourgogne Aligoté Les Chanterelles: this Bourgogne Aligoté comes from organically farmed vines planted in 1973 in the Les Chanterelles lieu-dit, on the lower slopes of Meursault. It offers a lively, finely etched expression of the grape, with citrus and white-flower notes. Ideal as an aperitif, it gains depth from the age of its vines.

Bourgogne Côte d’Or: this white Bourgogne, stylistically close to Meursault, blends chardonnay from three plots neighboring the appellation’s climats: Les Durots, Les Basses Gouttes and Les Grandes Coutures. Aged in oak barrels, it pairs generous fruit with lovely tension. It is an accessible introduction to the estate’s style.

Auxey-Duresses 1er Cru Les Reugnes: the estate’s only plot outside Meursault, this white Premier Cru comes from young vines planted at the entrance to the Auxey-Duresses valley, near Meursault and Monthélie. The vines grow at around 300 meters above sea level on south- and southeast-facing limestone and marl soils. Aged for about twelve months in barrel, it reveals citrus, white flowers, lovely minerality and a generous texture.

Meursault Vieilles Vignes: this village-level Meursault blends four climats north of the village, toward Volnay: En la Barre, Les Malpoiriers, Les Dressoles and Les Durots. The vines, aged fifty to eighty years, produce a concentrated wine aged for a year in barrel and then a few months in tank. White flowers, citrus, hazelnut and fresh butter mingle with lively acidity and a saline finish.

Meursault Les Narvaux: the Les Narvaux climat lies at the very top of the slope, above Genevrières and Bouchères, at an altitude of 330 meters. Its clay soil, rich in limestone fragments, faces southeast. Ripening later than the other cuvées, this Meursault stands out for its minerality, acidity and citrus aromas. It gains complexity after a few years in bottle.

Meursault Limozin: this village-level Meursault comes from old vines in the Limozin climat, south of the village, just below the Genevrières Premier Cru. It is one of the most powerful and generous wines in the range. Yellow fruit, spice notes and great aromatic complexity point to excellent aging potential.

Meursault 1er Cru Charmes: this Premier Cru comes from Charmes-Dessus, the upper part of the cru, opposite the renowned Perrières. Young and old vines grow side by side on this clay-limestone hillside plot. Full-bodied and generous, the wine unfolds notes of ripe white fruit, white flowers, fresh butter and toasted hazelnut, underpinned by fine chalky minerality.

Meursault 1er Cru Genevrières: the estate considers this perhaps its greatest wine. It comes from vines over fifty years old in the Genevrières-Dessous climat and is produced in very small quantities. Its name recalls the juniper bushes that once grew on these poor soils. Deep, elegant and finely etched, it combines richness and freshness with excellent aging potential.