A former tennis prodigy making waves in the world’s most famed fine wine region.
Boyish good-looks, charming, sharp as a whistle, fluent in English and still just 24 years of age, Théo Dancer is a rare phenomenon in the world of fine wine. At the tender age of 20, he became the vigneron (winemaker) at Domaine Vincent Dancer in Chassagne-Montrachet in the Côte de Beaune, Burgundy. Taking over from Vincent, his 48-year old father, he runs an estate of just over 8 hectares and produces 17 cuvées. Most importantly, his wines are stellar and improving every year as he experiments with quality improvements in the vineyard and cellar.
Tennis Prodigy
It might not have been this way if the young Théo had become a tennis player. From just 4-years old until he was 15, Théo was playing tennis at international level. He played for the French Federation and was on the European tour from the age of 12. His opponents include many faces that make their living on the professional tennis circuit today. However, the constant practice, travel and scrutiny eventually caught up with him and he made a dramatic decision to stop. Today, he rarely if ever plays.
Running Man
Instead, Théo put his youthful energy into mountain running. At the 2019 World Championships in Patagonia, he placed in the top 15 in the world. Like tennis, he would train constantly. However, in 2020, having decided to take over the family estate, he chose to focus on winemaking. Today, he competes in a couple of long-distance (90 km+) races a year, although “work is my priority, but I need to stay fit and healthy”, Théo tells me seriously as if he’s embarrassed to be doing something unrelated to wine!
Improving the Vines
With just three-full time staff, as well as assistance from his parents, Théo has sought to make his own imprint on the estate. In the vineyard, he has introduced the Echalas system, now employed by some of the top estates in Burgundy, such as Domaine Bizot and Domaine Arnoux-Lachaux. Experimenting with the “long stick” Echalas (1.9m) per vine, he has taken out the wire system entirely, such that the vineyards resemble a garden. Out has gone the tractor in favour of horses. He sprays by hand rather than machine, and has deliberately introduced the idea of ‘agroforestry’ to create biodiversity in the vineyard by adding forest and fruit trees in the centre of his plots. There are currently 400 new trees planted in his vineyards.
Low Yields
To increase quality, lower yielding vines are a very important part of his winemaking philosophy. “For white wines, in a great vintage, I am looking for no more than 35-40 hectolitres per hectare and 20-25 hectolitres per hectare for red wines”, he explains. The Echalas system, in any case, naturally results in fewer grapes per vine, which helps with ripening the berries earlier than other vine training systems, retaining more acidity and reaching phenolic ripeness quicker. Consequently, Théo is picking at least one week earlier, on average, than his neighbours.
Winemaking Simplicity
In the cellar, “I try to keep things as simple as possible”, he tells me. “I like to pick the grapes early to keep freshness, low pH and high acidity. I make the press with more pressure and for longer than before, to extract the full potential and qualities of my grapes, which leads to more dry extracts”. Interestingly, Théo looks to extract the characteristics of “the things which are not even supposed to produce some juice such as the skin, pips, even the bunches; this is where the real body of the wine is!” Théo has also stopped using new oak to mature his wines, as “I want purity of fruit, not aromas and flavours of oak”. The end result is more complexity and structure in the wines.
All About the Terroir
Soils vary considerably depending upon the plot – clay, limestone and white marl. Théo’s top crus include his now widely regarded Meursault Perrières 1er Cru and Chevalier Montrachet Grand Cru. In addition to his white wines, he makes six red wines from both the Haut-Côtes de Bourgogne and Côte de Beaune. In all instances, “I make the wines exactly the same way, but it is the soil and overall terroir that distinguishes each wine”, Théo explains. “When the client smells or tastes differences in their glasses between my wines, the one and only explanation to that is the soil structure and terroir, rather than because of me!”
All of this work, across multiple vineyard plots, produces a mere 25,000 bottles in good vintage conditions. “It’s a lot of work, but I make wines that include a part of my soul, that taste and look like me: fresh, electric, energetic and that will adapt to conditions I can’t control”, Théo explains with a cheeky grin. (For me, the style of the wines is distinct: elegance, delicacy, femininity, full of balance and with intellectual subtlety as opposed to being showy and obvious.)
He’s his Own Man
Théo’s friends include his best friend, Pierre-Vincent Girardin, another exceptionally young vigneron, and Charles Lachaux, who has taken him under his wing. His father, Vincent, is someone he relies on for advice, although Théo is keen to point out that “I will never divert from my convictions because of someone else’s viewpoint – I have always been my own man”.
His vision for the future is to create an estate with a reputation for knowledgeable wine lovers: “Domaine Vincent Dancer doesn’t have to be a massive, famous domaine – I prefer if it’s more loved by connoisseurs as a niche producer of great wines”, Théo explains. “I am also keen to give back to society by supporting local charities, especially in the athletics area, as well as wine charities like the Gérard Basset Foundation”. Indeed, Théo will be serving magnums of his Meursault Perrières 1er Cru at this year’s Golden Vines® Gala in Miami in November which raises funds for the Gérard Basset Foundation.
The 3 Best Wines Théo Has Made
Chassagne 1er Cru La Romanée 2020
What an incredibly vibrant and balanced wine. With some pleasant reduction on the nose, this was a wine I can only describe as having a steely backbone with a velvet undercoat. The fruit is perfectly fresh and pure, and the finish is long and elegant. Théo chose this wine as it was “the first wine that I actually made myself – it’s the first plot to harvest annually, and I made all the decisions about everything; so it means a lot to me!” RRP EUR 400 per bottle
Oskar Vin de France 2021
This was the vintage that decimated production due to a big frost. As a result, volumes were very small. Théo saw an opportunity to blend the full production of his top four plots – Tête de Clos, La Romanée, Meursault Perrières and Chevalier Montrachet – into one cuvée. The end result was just 3 barrels of wine. He declassified the wine to a Vin de France and created something unique in his region. The completed wine is very refined, delicate and fresh with a bit of grip on the powerful finish. Delicious. RRP EUR 1,000 per bottle*
*Théo now replicates this exercise every year with a limited amount of juice from each of his top 4 plots to create a reserve wine from one barrel.
Meursault Perrières 1er Cru 2023
Théo chose this wine as part of his top three because “it’s the most accurate and precise wine I have made to-date. It needs a lot more time to show, but it has amazing potential”. Indeed, the aromas jump out of the glass and the palate has incredible energy and tingly freshness. Flavours are once again not overly ripe, but delicate and elegant, and the body is balanced, full but not fat, with a lot of extract that provides some subtle power and drive. A linear and complex wine that will no doubt be a stunner with more time in the bottle. RRP EUR 800 per bottle
Théo’s Best 3 Wines He Has Ever Tasted
Domaine Bizot Marsannay 2017: “My wow moment, I fell in love with Jean-Yves Bizot’s wines after tasting such an incredible wine from Marsannay!”
Domaine d’Auvenay Meursault-Genevrières 2008: “I had incredible emotion drinking this wine, and it was on a Friday night which helped!”
Domaine Takahiko ‘Nana-Tsu-Mori’ Pinot Noir 2017: “Blew my mind that a Pinot from Japan could be better than most red wines I have tasted from Burgundy – I tasted it blind”.
Théo’s Desert Island Choices
Book: Everything Token by Steve Kaczynskei
Luxury Item: Ferrari
Film: James Bond – the early films
Band / Musician: Charles Aznavour(!)
What would you do on a desert island?: Build a house and fish
Death Row Wine Choice: Domaine Bizot Marsannay 2017
Lewis Chester DipWSET is a London-based wine & rare spirit collector and writer, member of the Académie du Champagne and Chevaliers du Tastevin, co-founder of Liquid Icons and, along with Sasha Lushnikov, the founder of the Golden Vines® Awards. He is also Honorary President and Head of Fundraising at the Gérard Basset Foundation, which funds diversity & inclusivity education programmes globally in the wine, spirits & hospitality sectors. The Golden Vines® 2025 will take place in Miami, USA between 7-9 November 2025, recognising the world’s best fine wine estates as voted by hundreds of fine wine professionals. Please register your interest for tickets on the website: https://liquidicons.com/work/golden-vines-awards.
