Domaine Jean-Marc Millot is a small Burgundy estate in Nuits-Saint-Georges producing wines from a range of Côte de Nuits appellations with an emphasis on individual parcel expression and natural, low-intervention winemaking. The Échezeaux du Dessus is a specific sub-lieu-dit within the large Échezeaux Grand Cru, representing the upper portion of the vineyard whose limestone-dominant, shallower soils produce a more minerally precise and structured expression than the lower, more clay-rich sections of the Grand Cru. The designation ‘Cuvée 1949’ refers to the year of planting of the vines from which this cuvée is produced, meaning these are vines that were planted in 1949 and are now over seventy-five years old. Vines of this age, whose root systems penetrate far into the subsoil and whose naturally low-yielding, slow-ripening character produces fruit of exceptional concentration and complexity, provide the raw material for a wine of singular character that most Échezeaux at commercial production levels cannot replicate.

Échezeaux du Dessus is one of the most precisely defined and quality-oriented sub-sections of the Échezeaux Grand Cru, whose upper-slope position provides better drainage, more direct limestone exposure and greater diurnal temperature variation than the lower sections, producing wines of more mineral and less immediately generous character but with greater structural depth and ageing potential. The 2017 Burgundy vintage was irregular and challenging, with a cold winter followed by spring frosts that reduced yields significantly and produced wines of concentrated character and somewhat irregular quality. From an old-vine parcel of the quality of the Millot Cuvée 1949 source, the low-yield, concentrated 2017 should have produced a wine of unusual intensity and mineral precision.

A single-lieu-dit Échézeaux Grand Cru from 75-year-old vines, documented and described as a specific cuvée by a small independent family domaine, is precisely the proposition that the most dedicated Burgundy collectors seek: wines that document a specific parcel, a specific vine age and a specific producer’s vision with the kind of precision that the major négoçiants, whose Échézeaux is blended from multiple sources, can never provide.

Deep ruby with a concentrated and mineral nose of dark cherry, violet, iron, dried rose, black truffle, spice and the distinctive limestone-mineral depth of the Échezeaux du Dessus terroir, intensified by the character of old vines. Medium to full-bodied with excellent tannin structure, vibrant natural acidity and a long, complex, mineral finish. Best from 2025 through 2042.