Domaine du Pélican: the Jura venture of Guillaume d’Angerville
Guillaume d’Angerville (pictured above) was in town to show the wines of his Jura winery, Domaine du Pélican. He began this project in 2012, but the story goes back to 2007 when he started looking for vineyards in the Jura. At the time it wasn’t as fashionable as it is now, but he wanted to be there.
He came back to his family estate. Domaine Marquis d’Angerville, in 2003 after the death of his father, Jacques. This Volnay-based estate had been in the family for 200 years. He inherited it, but after he’d been humbled in a blind tasting where he’d decided that an Arbois was in fact a Puligny-Montrachet, he set his eyes on the Jura. ‘It was close enough to Burgundy that I could sign my name on the label without lying,’ he says.
‘Initially I bought five hectares from a guy who had replanted the entire estate,’ he told me. ‘So the vineyard was in a good shape. The terroir was interesting.’ And later in in 2007 he bought another 5 hectares in Arbois, in a famous lieu dit called Grand Coroulet. ‘This needed a lot of work,’ says Guillaume, ‘and I ended up uprooting the whole lot.’ But he says that for a Burgundy guy it was a bit of a dream finding a vineyard of this size all in one block.
Five years later, he got another 5 hectares from Jacques Puffeney, whose winery was just down the road from Pélican.
‘Jura was nowhere then. The resurrection of Jura and alpine wines was around this time. I was lucky.’ Prior to the current fame of this region, most of the wines were drunk locally. ‘80% of the Jura wines were consumed in Jura,’ says Guillaume. ‘I was the first to come in from another region.’ So now he has 15 hectares, with a 70:30 white:red split.
Domaine du Pélican Brut S Zero Brut Nature 2020 Vin de France
Guillaume wanted to make a sparkling wine in Jura just with Savagnin, so this is why it isn’t Crémant de Jura, and why he can’t put Savagnin on the label. It’s the only sparkling 100% Savagnin from the region. Bright and fruity with mandarin, pear and lime, and a touch of spice on the finish. 92/100
Domaine du Pélican Savagnin Ouillé 2023 Arbois, Jura, France
Textural and refined with sweet cherry and pear, as well as some citrus. Pure and mineral laced with good balance and weight, finishing with a touch of aniseed. 94/100
Domaine du Pélican Savagnin Ouillé 2022 Arbois, Jura, France
Crystalline and taut with lovely acidity. Mineral and bright with cherry, pear, apple and spice. Rich but with tension, and quite lovely. 94/100
Domaine du Pélican Savagnin Ouillé Grand Coroulet 2022 Arbois, Jura, France
Subtle toast, honey and meal on the nose as well as lemon and mandarin. Fine, textural palate is pure and refined. Polished showing elegance and focus, with a saline finish. 94/100
Domaine du Pélican Chardonnay 2023 Arbois, Jura, France
Such a pretty wine: delicately toasty with sweet pear and peach fruit. Fine toast and marzipan notes. Very expressive. 94/100
Domaine du Pélican Chardonnay en Barbi 2023 Arbois, Jura, France
So textural, with pear and peach as well as some citrus and a touch of aniseed. Nice weight on the palate which shows some honeyed richness, and then it’s pure and expressive on the finish. Very refined. 95/100
Domaine du Pélican Savagnin Macération Pelliculaire 2022 Arbois, Jura, France
Complex and aromatic with a touch of structure. Nice depth with appealing citrus and apple. Powerful yet elegant, with some grip. 95/100
Domaine du Pélican Trois Cépages 2023 Arbois, Jura, France
This wine started because in the debut year there were so few red grapes Guillaume didn’t want to vinify them separately, so it’s a blend of around 60% Pinot Noir with Trousseau and Ploussard. It works very well: the Pinot is dominant, but the Trousseau gives spice and the Poulsard gives a smooth finish. Very fine with redcurrant, red cherry and some sour cherry. Nice acidity. Redcurrant and cherry fruit with nice detail and good acidity. 95/100
Domaine du Pélican Trois Cépages 2022 Arbois, Jura, France
Fresh, lively and textured with red cherry and redcurrant, as well as wild strawberry and spice, with some dried herbs too. Lots of personality here. Lively and complex, but elegant with simplicity, but also precision and beauty. 94/100
Domaine du Pélican Trousseau Béranger 2023 Arbois, Jura, France
This is very pale in colour. Lovely cherry and citrus with some redcurrant, red cherries and plums. So fresh and firm, tapering, elegant and pure. 96/100
Domaine du Pélican Savagnin Sous Voile 2020 Arbois, Jura, France
Three years under flor. Highly aromatic: tangy with a flor character, but it’s refined and quite delicate. Notes of mint, pear and lime as well as tangy apple fruit. Such a detailed, tart wine. Elegant and long. 96/100
Domaine du Pélican Savagnin Sous Voile 2019 Arbois, Jura, France
This spends 3 years under the flor, while the Vin Jaune spends 6 years. Fresh and tangy with real interest. Salty and intense with real complexity and focus, showing green apple and cherry as well as lemony fruit. Delicate and pure. 95/100
Domaine du Pélican Vin Jaune 2016 Arbois, Jura, France
Six years under flor. Juicy, tangy and vivid. Powerful with bice density. Complex and layered, this is oily, spicy and vivid with real power and precision. Tightwound and profound. 97/100
UK agent: Corney & Barrow
