Domaine Gilbert et Christine Felettig, located in the village of Chambolle Musigny in the Côte de Nuits appellation of Burgundy, France, is a rising star family-owned winery in the village. In 1965, founder Henri Felettig inherited approximately three hectares of farmland from his mother, including vineyards and a blackcurrant orchard. Early harvests were sold directly to the Chambolle Musigny cooperative. It wasn't until 1969 that the Felettig family began producing wines that truly belonged to the family. After five years of growth and development, Henri finally established his own winery, Domaine Henri Felettig, in 1974. He also acquired smaller plots to expand his vineyards, expanding the winery's vineyards from 2 hectares to 9 hectares. Through his tireless efforts, Henri Felettig rose from humble beginnings as a grower to owner, securing a prominent position in the village of Chambolle-Musigny.
In 1993, Henri Felettig's children, Gilbert and Christine, officially joined the winery, assisting their father in operations and management until their parents' retirement in 2005. With this collaborative effort, the winery reached new heights, and the vineyards gradually expanded to its current size of 13 hectares. In addition to the Chambolle Musigny estate, there are also plots in the neighboring villages of Morey Saint Denis and Vougeot, as well as some land from Christine's father-in-law, Jean Furois, in Vosne Romanée. While Burgundy's wineries are relatively high-quality, Felettig can be considered a cult winery among them. The estate's production is extremely small, less than 50,000 bottles per year, and village-level production often falls below 3,000 bottles. Felettig owns over 130 plots of land, including over 72 vineyards in Chambolle Musigny, each with its own distinct terroir. It is a perfect example of Burgundy's exquisite terroir.
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Felettig Winery's vineyards primarily grow Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Aligoté. Owners Gilbert and Christine adhere to organic vineyard management practices. In 2013, they transitioned part of their vineyards to organic farming. Gilbert described it as a difficult but necessary decision. The first year of the transition was marked by continuous rainfall, resulting in significant yield losses, with some vineyards experiencing a 50% drop. However, for the sake of the vineyard's vitality and sustainable development, the brother and sister persisted in organic farming practices to ensure high-quality grapes. All tasks within the vineyard, such as bud thinning, shaping, and grape harvesting, are performed manually.
In winemaking, Gilbert and Christine consistently combine traditional winemaking techniques with modern technologies. Every harvest season, the winery employs a large workforce to harvest grapes at peak ripeness. These grapes undergo a rigorous hand-selection process in the vineyards, then are rapidly transported to the winery for a second screening on a vibrating table to remove impurities and lower-quality grapes, ensuring the highest possible quality for each grape. The selected premium grapes are destemmed and cold-macerated at 10°C for 5-10 days to prepare for the subsequent alcoholic fermentation. The winery never adds any artificial yeast, using only native yeast from the grape skins. Fermentation lasts three weeks. Following fermentation, the winery transfers the lees and wine to oak barrels, which are 10%-50% new, for maturation. The winery ages the wine for 16 to 18 months. The winery does not filter or fin the wine before bottling to maximize the preservation of tannins and flavor.
