Domaine Guy Breton

 

Guy Breton is known by his friends as P’tit Max took over the family domaine from his grandfather in 1986. Following the example of traditionalist Jules Chauvet, Guy alongside local vignerons, Marcel Lapierre, Jean-Paul Thévenet, and Jean Foillard, soon called for a return to the old practices of viticulture and vinification: starting with old vines, never using synthetic herbicides or pesticides, harvesting late, rigorously sorting to remove all but the healthiest grapes, minimising addition of sulfur dioxide or none at all, and refusing both chaptalization and filtration. The end result allows Morgon to express itself naturally: rustic, spicy, loaded with schist minerals and at the same time, refreshing and deep-down delicious.

Breton’s domaine is comprised of just over four hectares (10.6 acres), most of which lies in the appellation of Morgon, above the village of Villié-Morgon. His own vineyards, which exceed a century of age in some parcels, are located in the Morgon climat “Les Charmes”, primarily in the high-altitude lieu-dit “Saint-Joseph,” where slow ripening allows for low alcohol and great freshness in the wines. Max is among the first in the region to start picking each year, cooling down his harvest and pressing before the end of fermentation to craft wines he likes to drink: bright, aromatic, low in tannin, and dangerously easy to quaff down to the last drop.

- taken from Kermit Lunch August 2024