Description
About Verget Bourgogne
“Jean-Marie Guffens’s Verget label continues to be a reference point for the Mâconnais. The best cuvées very much belong among the Mâconnais’s élite, but this portfolio is also rich with terrific values to purchase by the case that would make ideal daily drinkers or by-the-glass pours. Classy but keenly priced white Burgundy isn’t easy to come by these days, so we should all be thankful for the Maison Verget. These wines come warmly recommended.” William Kelley, The Wine Advocate
Many of our clients are likely familiar with Jean-Marie Guffens, a distinctive and outspoken grower known for his bright and clear wines under the Guffens-Heynen and Verget labels in our white Burgundy portfolio.
To explain the Verget style, winemaker Jean-Marie Guffens, who values purity due to his Flemish background, says, “I am Flemish, I love purity.”
Guffens rejects practices like lees stirring and reduction in white Burgundy, seeing them as attempts to hide flaws. He opts for screwcap closures to preserve fruit purity, and his philosophy is echoed by chief winemaker Julian Desplans.
In Andrew Jefford’s book, “The New France” (Mitchell Beazley, 2002), the Verget style is described as different from traditional white Burgundy, avoiding the rich and funky qualities. Instead, Verget wines focus on purity and sensual austerity, akin to the finest winemakers of Saar, Ruwer, or Alsace.
While Guffens has a reputation for being outspoken, the influence of Desplans, with a background at Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, has brought consistent quality to the Verget portfolio. Verget, though a négoce, ensures low yields, and Guffens’ team oversees the harvest, discarding any substandard grapes.
In the cellar, Desplans works with free-run juices, using natural ferments in large stainless-steel tanks that maintain a lees-to-wine ratio similar to oak barrels. The aim is for you to taste the pure fruit flavors without interference.
