Domaine Jaeger-Defaix

Winegrowers since the 16th century, the Niepce family owns Premiers Crus vines in the Rully appellation. In October 2002, Henriette Niepce bequeathed a parcel of Rully 1er Cru Mont-Palais blanc to her great-niece, Hélène Jaeger (wife of Didier Defaix of Domaine Bernard Defaix in Chablis). This parcel is part of an estate entirely planted with Rully 1er Cru whites and reds, which Hélène wished to take over in its entirety in order to perpetuate the winegrowing tradition of her Niepce ancestors, winegrowers since the 16th century. 

Henri Niepce, his great-grandfather, is one of the great figures of the Rully appellation. In the 30's and 40's, he worked hard to obtain the appellation d'origine contrôlée for Rully, and then to establish the reputation of the fledgling AOC. Located in the Côte Chalonnaise, south of the Côte de Beaune, the Rully vineyard today covers 330 ha (220 ha white and 110 ha red), of which only 100 ha are Premier Cru red and white.