Cyprien Arlaud
At Morey-Saint-Denis, two wine domaines share the same address. Domaine Arlaud refers to wines produced from vineyards owned by this family, while Cyprien Arlaud refers to wines produced from vineyards leased and cultivated elsewhere within the Côte de Nuits region. The winemaker, the winery, and the principles are all the same. They first obtained organic certification and then biodynamic certification; their Premier Cru and Grand Cru vineyards are plowed by horse.
In the cellar, they use only minimal intervention: native yeasts, open concrete fermentation tanks, extraction through pumping over and foot-treading, and bottling without fining or filtration, timed to the lunar cycle.
Grapes of the Pinot Noir variety are grown in the Villages and Premier Cru vineyards, as well as in the cooler, higher-altitude vineyards of the Hautes Côtes de Nuits region.
The history
The Domaine Arlaud family traces its origins to the married couple Renée Amiot, a Burgundian, and Joseph Arlaud, from the Ardèche. The family considers 1942, the year the couple married, to be the founding year of the estate. Although some records indicate the 1950s as the starting point, the family officially recognizes 1942 as the year of its founding.
Cyprien Arlaud is the third generation. He produced his first vintage in 1998.
What followed was a simple aspiration: to expand beyond the family-owned vineyards while never compromising the standards they had upheld at home. This is the Cyprien Arlaud line, consisting of wines produced from leased vineyards that he cultivates personally. The third brand, Scritch, also stands alongside the other two.
One team, three labels, and a single wine cellar located at Morey-Saint-Denis.
The vineyards
All business operations are conducted at 41 rue d'Epernay in Morey-Saint-Denis. Using this location as its base, Cyprien Arlaud manages vineyards not only within the Morey-Saint-Denis region but also in Nuits-Saint-Georges (including the Premier Cru climat Aux Chaignots), Vosne-Romanée, and the high-altitude vineyards of Hautes Côtes de Nuits.
The latter region is an exception. In the village of Chevannes, the 1.61-hectare Pinot Noir vineyard, planted in 1959, is situated on a plateau at an elevation of 350 meters, far higher than the famous slopes. The planting density is 4,000 vines per hectare, and the vines are trained on a trellis system, a method used in Hautes Côtes since the 1950s, which differs from the cultivation method used in the rest of Côte de Nuits.
Yields are low, and it is specified that approximately 9,563 bottles are produced from this Chevannes plot.
Why 350 metres changes the picture
Hautes Côtes de Nuits exhibits characteristics different from those of the original Côte de Nuits. Due to the high altitude and plateau terrain, the air is cooler and windier, which slows the ripening process and preserves the fruit's acidity. The soil in Chevannes is calcareous clay, a typical Burgundian soil composition consisting of a mixture of limestone and clay.
Drainage is an aspect that Cyprien Arlaud manages proactively. In the Premier Cru and Grand Cru zones, the fields are plowed with horses to loosen the soil and allow water to drain well; during the rainy season, the frequency of tillage is reduced so that cover crops can absorb excess moisture.
Since cover crops can increase humidity, the leaves are removed and tressage (a method of folding and tying shoots upward instead of pruning) is used to maintain air circulation within the canopy. These are a series of minor decisions, which can make the difference.
The grape varieties
Red Burgundy, derived from Côte de Nuits, refers to Pinot Noir, and this is precisely the wine contained in these bottles.
The age of the vines plays a major role. Many of the vines in the Domaine Arlaud vineyard are over 40 years old, and the oldest are nearly 100 years old, naturally maintaining yields at an optimal level and increasing concentration without significant intervention from the winery.
The Chevannes vineyard, planted in 1959, also belongs to this group of old vines.
Winemaking
Harvesting is done by hand, and the grapes are sorted on three sorting lines. The grape clusters are destemmed but not crushed, so the whole grapes are placed directly into open concrete fermentation tanks. Fermentation proceeds using the native yeasts already present on the grapes.
Extraction is carried out gently. After pumping over and foot-treading to break up the cap, the grapes are slowly pressed using a pneumatic press. The winemaking process takes approximately 20 to 25 days.
The wine is aged in oak barrels for 15-18 months, with the proportion of new oak limited to 20%. Bottling is timed according to the lunar cycle, and the wine undergoes no fining or filtration.
While the use of stems is not prohibited, it depends on the circumstances and the grapes. When a strict double sorting process ensures sufficiently clean fruit, Cyprien Arlaud includes some whole stems; otherwise, they are excluded.
All of these processes are backed by certification. By the time of the 2024 harvest, he had accumulated experience from 20 certified organic harvests and 10 certified biodynamic harvests, and he candidly states that his long history of working this way has enabled him to navigate even difficult harvest seasons successfully. For 2024, this meant 25 to 26 spray applications, 3.3 kg of copper per hectare, harvesting on 19 September, and a yield of 15 to 17 hectoliters per hectare. This amounts to a loss of about 70% of the usual yield.
What the Cyprien Arlaud label covers
These include several appelations, as well as a separate Scritch range. Three labels, one winery and the same philosophy behind every wine.
The wines are, amongst others:
- Bourgogne Rouge "Oka"
- Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Nuits Rouge
- Pernand-Vergelesses Blanc
- Morey-Saint-Denis "Clos Solon"
- Chambolle-Musigny
- Gevrey-Chambertin
- Vosne-Romanée
- Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru "Aux Réas"
- Nuits-Saint-Georges
- Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru "Les Chaignots"
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Cyprien Arlaud and Domaine Arlaud?
Domaine Arlaud bottles wine from vineyards the family owns. Cyprien Arlaud is the label for parcels that Cyprien Arlaud rents and farms himself, made in the same cellar by the same hands.
Where is the cellar?
In Morey-Saint-Denis, in the Côte de Nuits, at 41 rue d'Epernay.
Are the wines organic or biodynamic?
Both, and certified. Organic certification came first, biodynamic certification about a decade later, and horse ploughing plus plant infusions are part of the routine in the top parcels.
Who was Joseph, of Cuvée Joseph?
Joseph Arlaud came from the Ardèche and married Renée Amiot, the pairing behind the founding of Domaine Arlaud. The Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Aux Chaignots carries his name.
