Burgundy

A chance bottle with friends in the Basque country over a decade ago provided the spark for an introduction to Domaine Pattes Loup. Having tasted what was an excellent wine, the few attempts to import the wines failed due to the minuscule quantities that were produced at the time.

Thomas Pico grew up in Courgis, a tiny village located only 10 minutes south-west of Chablis, and naturally, he spent his childhood wandering in the vineyards with his father and his grandfather. 

From a young age, Thomas helped out in the vineyards and in the cellar, where his passion for winemaking was honed working particularly with his grandfather, whom he dearly loved. 

Having absorbed some practical knowledge, he took himself off to Beaune to study viticulture and oenology which was followed by a year working in the cellar at Domaine Louis Max in Nuits Saint Georges.

During the consecutive two years spent working side by side with Jean-Pierre Charlot of Domaine Joseph Voillot in Volnay, Pico learned to focus on terroir and purity and to highlight the terroir of each site in the wines.

Following a short stint with Dominique Derain in Saint Aubin, in 2004 the young man returned to the family estate, Domaine de Bois d’Yver where the wines produced at the time were correct, but indifferent.

In 2005 Thomas started with 2.45-hectare parcels inherited from his late grandfather. Two hectares of Chablis Villages and the remainder planted in Chablis 1er Cru Butteaux. That same year, he took over 8 hectares of his father’s vines and, clearly remembering what his grandfather had taught him about care and attention in the vineyards, the driven, curious, and motivated young vigneron took radical measures and converted his vineyard to organic farming, a brave challenge to adopt in an often inhospitable wine growing region. This decision was partly influenced by his friends Alice and Olivier de Moor, the avant-gardistes of natural wines in Chablis.

Thomas Pico was clear about where he wanted to bring his Domaine Pattes Loup (translates as wolf’s paws), respecting the land, its environment, and its biodiversity, so crucial for the wellbeing of his vines. He was also adamant that he wished to produce quality Chablis. His first bottling was released in 2006.

Steadily, Thomas became in charge of more and more parcels from his father’s vineyards and his Domaine Pattes Loup now comprises 15 hectares, mostly located on the left bank of the little river Serein. 

Highly respectful of what nature has to offer, Thomas Pico is committed to hand-harvesting and he limits the yields - when it’s not mother nature who reduces the harvest due to frost or hailstones.

A consummate craftsman-vigneron and a charismatic, thoughtful man, all his efforts are going into impeccable viticulture and careful, unhurried vinification. Grapes are hand-picked and he approaches winemaking with an untrammelled openness which reflects a determination to express the various vineyard characters through the grape. In his modern and impeccably pristine cellar built in 2014, Thomas vinifies and ages his wines in an array of vessels including egg-shaped concrete, stainless steel vats, and oak barrels.

His deft hand is evident within all his wines, from his Vent D’Ange to his Premiers Crus. They have swiftly improved and have gained harmony and complexity with time.

Thomas Pico is the quiet genius on a rising trajectory. With a deep understanding of his land, he crafts wines that are shining with precision and brimming with vitality. They have a tactile grandeur and they express the soul, life and spirit of the land that he has meticulously, and extremely courageously, metamorphosed.


Profile © Françoise and Seán Gilley

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