When you’re new on the winemaking scene and already being discussed in the same breath as Jura’s finest—which are among the most sought-after labels in the world of sommeliers—you’re doing something right. That’s Joseph Dorbon, and the rapidly growing frenzy for his small lineup of “culty” wines is exhilarating, if not overwhelming.
We’re here to tell you the brouhaha is fully justified because (1) these generously priced wines shatter France’s price to quality scale, (2) they read more like polished, high-end Burgundy, and (3) they’re produced in the smallest of quantities, leaving heaps of people empty-handed with each passing vintage. This, of course, is not Joseph’s fault: The man only owns three hectares of vines, of which a third of them are planted to red, and from that he bottles just two cuvées. Today’s vivifying blend of Pinot Noir-Poulsard comes from gnarled old vines in the vineyard of “Les Bernardines” and we believe it to be his finest bottling. We asked you to take a step outside your comfort zone with last year’s 2015 offer, and we were happy to discover that no one held back—instead of stepping, you leaped. Dorbon’s 2016 is no exception: It is an explosive, deeply expressive treat. We have no doubt you’ll find immense pleasure in this exciting upcoming producer.
I don’t fault anyone for exercising caution in France’s Jura region. I’ll be the first to say that for every life-changing bottle that emerges from the hillside village of Arbois, it seems like there are 10 others that disappoint or worse, are deeply flawed. Still, there’s a shortlist of top producers who seem to have “cracked the code” and release outstanding, world-class wine every vintage. Houillon-Overnoy, Jacques Puffeney, Jean-François Ganevat, Michel Gahier—these are names that sommeliers and collectors fight over every release, locking the wines into an endless cycle of higher prices and tighter availability. Fortunately, for those of us who don’t have unlimited financial resources and time with which to pursue Jura wines, there is a new name in the Jura producing wines of extraordinary quality and bulletproof consistency.
Joseph Dorbon is the proprietor of a small bed & breakfast in the small village of Vadans, across the road from Montigny-lès-Arsures (one of the region’s most prized hillsides) and six miles north of Arbois, the viticultural epicenter of Jura. Dorbon began farming grapes and producing wine in 1996 but has stayed almost entirely out of the public eye until quite recently. He works a small collection of vineyards and the microscopic amount of wine they produce initially flowed exclusively to guests of Dorbon’s B&B and local restaurants but quickly became a “secret treasure” for devoted Jura collectors and sommeliers.
The vines that produce today’s wine are located in “Les Bernardines,” a single parcel of 40+-year-old Pinot Noir and Poulsard planted in the region’s famed limestone and clay soil. Dorbon’s vines are in the final stage of achieving official organic certification and are tilled by horse and harvested by hand. The clusters are de-stemmed and fermented separately with natural, airborne yeasts. The Poulsard (a.k.a Ploussard) ages in stainless steel while the Pinot Noir ages in neutral French barriques for at least 18 months before the two are masterfully blended together. This gradual, patient process holds more in common with cellars one hour west in Burgundy than it does with some of Dorbon’s more progressive neighbors in the Jura. In other words, this is not a funky, spritzy, “challenging” Jura wine. On the contrary, Dorbon’s careful and judicious work in the vines and cellar creates a gorgeously refined red that owes equal homage to Burgundy and its native alpine terroir.
As with all the greatest Jura reds, one glass of this wine instantly transports you directly to Joseph Dorbon’s rural hillside vineyard. His 2016 “Les Bernardines” Vieilles Vignes (old vines) unfurls with pure class once it splashes into a large Burgundy stem after a short decant. This is alpine country, made apparent by the aromatic multitude of muddled herbs, crushed river stones, wildflowers, and mountainside foliage in the glass. As more oxygen arrives, the wine began unwinding even further, revealing vividly ripe, sun-kissed fruits in the form of wild strawberry, black cherry, and crushed brambleberries. It’s a superbly fresh wine that pings the senses with enlivening acidity, crunchy tannins, and luxurious layers that feel like we’re due west, in the upper-echelons of Burgundy. Accordingly, it will age as such—I don’t think 10 or 15 years is out of the question! I love wines like Dorbon’s. Jura is more than a culty, esoteric appellation strictly for sommeliers; the very best can bring ineffable pleasure to lovers of Burgundy, Willamette, Loire Valley—really, any region that focuses on finesse, purity, and sublime elegance. Cheers!
