Collection: Hospices de Nuits-Saint-Georges | 2024 Syndicate

Introduction

Honest Grapes Grand Crew Classé offers members the opportunity to form crowdsourced syndicates which will purchase barrels of Burgundy at the Hospice de Nuits-Saint-Georges charity auction, to be elaborated and bottled by a famous local winemaker. These are unique wines, with only a few hundred bottles produced, as masterpieces of Burgundian art. We have formed similar syndicates for the 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023 vintages at the Hospices de Beaune and this is our fourth time bidding at the Hospices de Nuits, with 2020, 2021 and 2022 all successful.

Wines from the vintage 2023 will be purchased at the auction on 11th March 2024 and will be ready for delivery in Q1 of 2026. The auction price paid is somewhat uncertain, and as 2023 is looking exciting, we have based our estimates on pricing being similar to the auction prices for the 2022 vintage.

Wines are sold in lots, and with 24 shares of 12 x 75cl bottles per barrel, we need syndicates to form with commitment to whole barrels. If you commit to a 6 share (72 bottle) membership, there are additional options for personalised labelling. These are often requested for weddings, birthdays and corporate syndicate memberships.

We will organise events with Tom Harrow, Nathan Hill and the winemaker in London and Burgundy during the maturation period of the wine so that syndicate members can enjoy the fun of seeing the wine develop.

This year we have again selected Maison Edouard Delaunay to complete our élevage. We have been working closely with the maison for 5 years now and are increasingly impressed with the quality and balance of their wines, especially the cuvées from Nuits-Saint-Georges, with which the maison has a close historical affinity. Laurent Delaunay and his team are also on a mission to see the appellation’s wines receive the credit they deserve. Recently re-established, Maison Delaunay has been winning high critical acclaim since its rejuvenation – winning IWC winemaker of the year an incredible three years running; we know of no other property achieving the same feat. Apart from that, they are thoroughly pleasant people to work with!

Hospices de Nuits-Saint-Georges Background

Founded in 1270 by the sisters of Hotel-Dieu in Beaune, during the final years of Saint Louis IX’s reign, the Hospices de Nuits moved sites in 1633 before the buildings we see today began construction in 1692 under the direction of Fr Antide Midan of the Church of St-Symphorien de Nuits. Pre-dating the foundation of the bigger Hospices de Beaune by 173 years, the “hidden hospice” is known only to a few insiders and Burgundy afficionados. In recent years profits from the auctions have seen the construction of a nursing home in 1995 and the new Saint Laurent Hospital in 2018. The auction continues to be essential to fund the provision of care for the vulnerable.

Throughout its benevolent history, grateful landowners have donated to the Hospices de Nuits-Saint-Georges. The estate today comprises 12.5 hectares of vineyards, including choice parcels from within the wine communes of Nuits-Saint-Georges, Vosne-Romanée, and Gevrey-Chambertin. Perhaps the jewel in the crown is ‘Les Didiers’ 1er Cru: The monopole owned by the Hospices which is next to (and was previously considered part of) Nuits Saint George's widely acknowledged “Grand Cru” - ‘Les Saint Georges’. The cuverie was modernised in 2002 and winemaker Jean-Marc continues to push the level of quality of the Hospices’ wines ever higher.

This year, some 145 barrels will be auctioned across 19 cuvées. Our selection process is that we tasted all of the cuvées last November together with a group of Honest Grapes Club members on our syndicate weekend in Burgundy. We have since been in discussion with Laurent Delaunay and developed a shortlist of suitable cuvées together with our estimate of the likely auction price , which we call the Nominal Share Price for a 12 bottle share. We intend to bid for a Nuits-Saint-Georges Premier Cru, although by joining the Syndicate, you are entrusting us to make the right decision on your behalf at the auction.

Syndicate Membership

The actual price paid for each barrel won’t be known until after the auction. The prices shown are thus estimates – please see the notes below for payment terms and the post-auction adjustment of membership costs. Prices are per share of 12 bottles delivered to Honest Grapes UK bonded storage. The wines described below are illustrative, and we will trust Tom to make the final selection based on recommendations from contacts at the Hospice and our selected winemaker.

We will do our best to consult with the syndicate if we feel we need to go much over the nominal share price we’ve set. We generally end up at between 85-120% of the Nominal Share Price. If you would like us to buy a less expensive wine or try to get a bigger Premier Cru, please let us know – we are building the syndicate on your behalf!

Previous Years at the Hospices de Nuits-Saint-Georges

We have selected the following cuvées at previous auctions:

• 2020, Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Les Didiers Cuvée Fagon
• 2021, Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru ‘Les Corvées Pagets’, Cuvée Saint Laurent
• 2022, Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er cru ‘Aux Vignerondes’ – Cuvée Bernarde Delesclache

The small print

1. Barrels are crowdfunded by syndicates which need 24, 48 or 72 cases of 12 to succeed based on a 1, 2 or 3 barrel lot of wine.
2. The case price includes the cost of the wine, auctioneer’s premium, cost of the barrels, ‘elaboration fee’ to the winemaker for chemical analysis, elaboration, maturation and bottling, labelling, transport to Honest Grapes’ UK bonded storage and Honest Grapes’ project management over the two years to delivery.
3. Standard delivery is in cases of 6x75cl bottles. We will ask you for any special case and bottling instructions (e.g. magnum formats) and labelling (within the limits of practicality and regulation). We will pass on any extras on a reasonable basis. The expected cost of magnums or jeroboams is £180 per 12 bottle equivalents (9l). Please note that ‘dry goods’ costs are rising rapidly, so we cannot guarantee this price until just before bottling.
4. Syndicate members confirm membership with an 80% deposit based on the expected case price on invoice and cleared funds by 7th March 2024. The remaining subscription will be due immediately after the auction (within 7 days please) once the adjustments described below are confirmed.
5. Given the short time between pledges and the auction, we are trusting members’ pledges. If you wish to withdraw from your pledge, please do so in writing by latest 17:00 GMT on Friday 1st March, otherwise you may still be charged if we cannot sell your share/s elsewhere before the auction.
6. Payment is via our club Direct Debit scheme or by bank transfer. Credit / Debit Card / PayPal is not accepted.
7. If the syndicate fails to raise enough subscribers before the auction, we will encourage syndicate members to take extra cases to make up the lot. We will also encourage prospective members to shuffle their requests in order that we can make up entire lots of wine.
8. Honest Grapes will help the syndicate to succeed by underwriting up to 15% of the production if unsold at the time of the auction. We shall offer this surplus wine for sale thereafter, generally at a higher price.
9. If the syndicate still fails to raise enough subscribers before the auction, or fails to purchase wines at the auction, we will return members' deposits less any costs directly incurred.
10. Syndicate members authorise us to go up to 20% higher in price if we believe in the quality of wine on tasting and the value at auction. In previous years we have been between 85%-120% of the nominal amount and of course we’ll reduce the price per bottle if we manage to secure the right cuvée at a lower cost.
11. The selection of wines shown in this document is indicative and members rely on the expertise of Honest Grapes and our selected éleveur to make the final decision at the auction on behalf of the Syndicate.
12. If we fail to secure sufficient wine to meet every Syndicate member’s requests, or purchase more than one cuvée, Honest Grapes will implement a method for scaling back and / or allocating cuvées purchased.
13. Honest Grapes will offer tastings and experiences in partnership with the winemaker from auction to bottling. Such experiences may be separately chargeable.