As owner of the largest holdings of grand cru vineyards in Gevrey-Chambertin, Hubert Camus is known for incredible wines. The domaine exists since before 1730 and the Camus family has been producing wines in Gevrey-Chambertin since 1832. The domaine is made up of 18 hectares (two-thirds of it being grand cru).Camus is the grand cru master and one of the most respected winemakers in Burgundy. He has spent a lot of time and effort working with the French government and with winemaker organizations in order to ensure the quality standards of all Burgundy wines.
Born in 1937, Hubert started full-time at the domaine after completing his military service. He took over from his father in 1974. He was the founding president of the BIVB, and would go on to become a three-time president. Hubert Camus still uses the old school methods that have been passed down from his ancestors: hand-picking, traditional vinification, 14-18 months� "elevage" in oak barrels. The wines are unfiltered; so there is often sediment in these great grand crus. This adds to the flavor�as well as the cellar-ability�to these wines.
About their farming practices:
We never use fertilizer and like to plough the vines � the weeds being returned to the soil by the ploughing tractor, a natural fertilizer says Melle, but never with herbicides. The domaine is not biodynamic but uses many of their �treatments�. They still need to use the �Bordeaux mixture� but it depends on the sanitary state of the vines � there is no systematic treatment. Melle says biodynamic would anyway be a dream because it cannot be achieved if your neighbours are not also �en bio�. One might be able to take exception with that statement given the larges blocks that they own, but anyway Melle describes their approach as lutte raisonn�e, also respecting the phases of the moon for some actions.
