Meet our winemakers...
Les Frères Dutruy
Julien and Christian are the brothers behind Les Frères Dutruy. The business has grown significantly over the past two decades and has become a widely respected winery, getting high marks for pioneering vineyard work, technical expertise in the cellar, and for developing markets abroad. The cellar’s artisanal approach to making wine has remained a key feature, as has the emphasis on organic winemaking, including biodynamic vine parcels – even more remarkable because organic growing can be difficult when making disease-prone Chasselas wine, their favorite, and the cellar’s hallmark grape variety.
the oldest vineyard in switzerland
Their great-grandfather began growing grapes in Founex, a village between Geneva and Nyon, in 1917, and in 2006, the brothers took over the family winery and well-known vineyard nursery business (the oldest in Switzerland) from their father. One hundred years after their grandfather began the family business, the brothers won the coveted Swiss Winery of the Year award in 2017.
From the start, the Dutruy boys had people talking. Although Vaud is the only Swiss region that grows more white than red grapes (70%), by 2007 two-thirds of their vineyard was red grapes. They knew they wanted to make high quality wines and their training was tailored to give them complementary skills. Christian, the older brother, studied at Changins, Switzerland’s wine university before working at world-class wineries in Napa Valley, California and South Africa. At age 23 he worked for Cilmor Winery, producing 15 million liters of wine a year. He also spent several months working at Domaine Hugel in Alsace and Highfield Estate in Marlborough, New Zealand. His involvement in professional associations includes 10 years as president of the Swiss Federation of Wine Nurseries.
Julien mastered the art of very fine French wines by earning a diploma as a viticulture and oenology technician in Burgundy before heading to the University of Bordeaux II Victor Segale, where he finished best in his class. Bordeaux degree in hand, he worked at Smith Haut Lafitte and Canon La Gaffelière.
The Vineyards
The Dutruys have 25 hectares (by Swiss standards this is a medium-large growing area) for making wine and another five for the nursery business near Founex. In addition, in 2016 they bought three hectares of vines in Epesses. The village is part of the spectacular Lavaux Unesco World Heritage site vineyards built by monks more than 1,000 years ago.
Domaine de la Treille, in the villages of Founex and Commugny, is their centerpiece vineyard, near the wine cellar. It was created about the same time as the family business. Nearby La Doye, in Coppet, which they manage, was added in 1996. The two vine parcels are the backbone of their wines. In 2015 they built a new, state -of-the-art winery and barrel room (180 barrels from some of Europe’s best oak forests).
Epesses, with its very steep slopes, has its own remarkable mix of soils. Les Cheneaux, now part of Les Frères Dutruy, is mainly clay but with 26-30% limestone, a proportion that is famous for making finely tuned Chasselas wines possible. Donjonné, higher up the slope, is gravellier. These vines are bordered by small old canals that maintain the critical water supply. In order to include a very prestigious (and rare) Dézalley AOC Grande Cru in their lineup, the Dutruys buy grapes from this neighboring area where the mother rock sits close to the surface. As a result, there are few buildings, just vineyards.
The Lavaux vineyards are part of what encouraged the brothers to follow their dream of making parcellaire wines: wines from tiny vine parcels, small terroirs with distinctive characteristics. The 55 small barrels in the new cellar—which operates using gravity—are designed for this. As part of the total 180 barrels, they make it possible to create a number of wines which are known for their delicacy, whether as single grape wines or blends.
The winery, which sits in a charming village in a part of Vaud whose gentle slopes above Lake Geneva were carved out by the Rhone glacier 12,000 years ago, has two main product lines: Expression des Terroirs highlights various terroirs, and the prestige line, Les Romaines, carries winemaking to another, classy, level.
our hand-selected white wines
from
Les Frères Dutruy
Chasselas Epesses "les cheneaux"
Wine profile
Opulent and fruity. Nose—classic Chasselas white fruits with a floral touch. Mouth—rich with very good mineral tension, slight pearling which adds freshness.
Cultivation and vinification
Integrated production—viticulture that respects the environment—for damage control. Terraced vineyards, worked and harvested entirely by hand. Hand harvesting for old vines gives reduced yields. Whole bunch pressing, traditional Swiss vinification in oak vats at 18C, maturing for 6 months on fine lees in Swiss oak vats of 2,500 l.
Food pairing
Aperitif, freshwater fish, pike in light sauces, lake trout, arctic char, various cheese dishes.
Chasselas Dézaley "les terrasses"
Wine profile
A wine with enormous aging potential at which the young wine hints, with its characteristic Dézaley personality that points to a mature wine. Nose—smoky, toast, gunpowder. Mouth—powerful and opulent, with fruit coupled with the same notes found in the nose.
Cultivation and vinification
Terraced vineyard, cultivated and harvested entirely by hand. Viticulture that respects the environment, with integrated production for damage control. Hand harvesting, old vines, giving reduced yields. A very high level of limestone soil (30%), steep slope, south-southwest exposure facing Lake Geneva. The prestigious Dézaley terroir is punctuated by charmus, small terraces surrounded by drystone walls. This Grand Cru comes from several of these vine parcels, worked entirely by hand. Whole grape pressing, traditional vinification in old oak barrels at 18C, matures for 6 months on fine lees in old 228 l barrels before it is blended.
Food pairing
Gastronomy white fine wine, lake fish in light sauces, lake trout, pike, country chicken, cheese: Vacherin Mont d’or.
Les Romaines Chardonnay
Wine profile
Pure yellow robe with gold highlights, complex and intense aromas of apricot, vine peaches, white flowers, lemon that are balanced by the oak. In mouth, lovely balance with the grape variety’s acidity
Cultivation and vinification
Organic vineyard. Matured 12 months in oak barrels.
Food pairing
Sea fish, shellfish, seafood, poultry
Les Romaines Viognier
Wine profile
Pale yellow robe with golden highlights, intense aromas of peach, apricot and fleurs d’oranger, white pepper notes. Lovely balance in the soft and full mouth, with the acidity providing freshness.
Cultivation and vinification
Organic. Matured 12 months in oak barrels.
Food pairing
Aperitif, melon with ham, Asian cuisine, asparagus, Vacherin Mont d’Or cheese.
our hand-selected red wines
from
Les Frères Dutruy
Les Romaines Assemblage
Wine profile
Red blend of Gamaret, Garanoir, Gamay and Pinot Noir grapes. Initially three grapes in equal proportions (like the columns on the label for this high-end range), the grapes now vary from one vintage to another to achieve a juicy, powerful, classy wine. Intensely purple robe, nose of black fruit (blueberries, blackberries) aromas with spice notes. Gamaret’s powerful tannins blend well with the aromatic delicacy of Pinot Noir and Garanoir.
Cultivation and vinification
Organic vineyard. Matured 12 months in oak barrels.
Food pairing
Beef fillet, prime rib, game, grilled foods
Cultivation Method
At Les Frères Dutruy's Côte vineyard, work is carried out according to organic viticulture standards, without any synthetic products or herbicides, in order to guarantee fertilization of the land through composting as well as an approach that respects the health of our customers and our employees.
