Fabrice Dodane, Le Dos d’Chat Ploussard 2020

Location: France, Jura

Winemaker: Fabrice Dodane

Grapes: Ploussard (Poulsard)

Soil: Limestone, marl

From us at M&L: Fabrice Dodane has been making wine at Domaine de Saint Pierre since the late 80s and has a place, in our opinion, among the greats from the region like Puffeney, Overnoy, and the late Pascal Clairet. In some respects he is also a bridge for drinkers between those greats and newer stars like Labet and Marnes Blanches, to name a few.

Sadly, it has been a devastating few years in the Jura. The extreme weather brought on by climate change has left many growers with nothing. Fabrice reported an 89% LOSS in grapes for the 2021 vintage. We cannot think of any enterprise that can sustain itself with only 10% of the raw materials it needs.

Fabrice, like many vigneron in his position, has looked outside of his own 7 hectare estate to friends in Beaujolais and elsewhere in France to help supplement the loss. Thankfully, he is a deft winemaker who has, with those inputs, produced wonderfully complex wines that fit nicely into his repertoire.

We are incredibly lucky to have any of his wines, and we are excited for you to try them.

Generally, the whites are raised in wood puncheons - some are aged in the oxidative way, under flor and some are topped up, or ouillé. The reds are raised in stainless tank and bottled rather fresh (slight reduction is easily blown off with a quick decant).

We love these wines for their transparency, complexity and drinkability.