Alsace... At Last!

Vins d'Alsace Rietsch

France, Alsace, Mittelbergheim

The long-awaited Blanc & Rouge au Litre 2019 have finally landed!

We've had a chat with Jean-Pierre:

"The Blanc au Litre 2019 consists of Auxerrois and Riesling. I have actually also added a good amount from the 2018 harvest, as we've had an abundance of wine that year, compared to 2019. Actually there is even more 2018 than 2019 juice in this wine, I would say about 2/3 of 2018 and 1/3 of 2019. As as a result the wine is more creamy and round. It was just bottled in April but I have the feeling it doesn't need much more time to mature, it is ready to drink now. This is an Edelzwicker cuvee, which is an Alsace appellation. Next year it will be Vin de France like the red one."

"The 2018 addition had long aging on lees. As it was a great harvest that year we didn't have to sort out much rotten grapes, they were pretty good quality already. They then went onto the pneumatic press. I have added a small amount of sulphur into the 2/3 of wine of 2018, but none into 2019. In general the sulphur amount is still very low.

"What is new for the Rouge au Litre 2019 is that it now has an addition of Pinot Gris, so the appellation changed to Vin de France. In Alsace, if you want to keep the Edelzwicker appellation for the reds, you are only allowed to put in Pinot Noir, no Pinot Gris. So that is the reason for the change.
The wine is made from a semi-carbonic fermentation and was macerated for 22 days. It was then aged in steel vats for six months. I have added 10mg of sulphur on bottling.

"This year the harvest is already looking quite good. We've had a good amount of rain over the winter months, which brought a good water reserve to the soil for dryer days. The vines are developing lovely so far, we are now at the end of the flowering phase, with the fruits starting to set very soon. Right now the cool temperatures in Alsace are helping to keep the growth spurts in control."

Now in Stock

WHITE
NEW 2019 Blanc au Litre - Riesling, Auxerrois


RED
NEW 2019 Rouge au Litre - Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris


SPARKLING
2016/17 Extra Brut - Non Dose - Auxerrois, Chardonnay
Natural fermentation from indigenous yeasts. Aged in the tank for one year. Bottling was done with an addition of fresh grape juice from the new crop in 2018.

WHOLESALE ONLY

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A Chat with Vignereuse

Vignereuse
France, Gaillac, Andillac

Marine Leys works with a mix of local varieties: Mauzac, Loin de l’Oeil, Braucol, Duras and then some Gamay (fashionable in the 1970’s for Primeur wines), and Syrah (the most commercial of the varieties, and Gaillac used to sell a lot of bulk must and juice to other regions).

The vineyards are situated on the south-east-facing slopes of the Cordais plateau. The soil is schist on limestone – less argilo-calcareous than the rest of Gaillac. All wines are fermented and aged in fibreglass. No sulphur is used on the reds.


How did this year's harvest go for you?
It was a very good one. We were lucky to have had rain at the right time. The maturity progress was never interrupted and the alcohol levels aren't too high either. I would say we've had the perfect result.


That's great! A lot of other winemakers we spoke with have suffered from the big heatwave this summer
I know, we are really lucky here in Gaillac. We have enough water but not too much. Haven't had any frost this year either. Last month we've already had 100mm of rain, which is already building a reserve in water supply for next year.


What is special about Gaillac?
Gaillac is one of the oldest vineyards in France, established in Roman times or even earlier, with great soil and terroir. Roman merchants transported wine to Bordeaux and Northern Europe down the Tarn.
Gaillac is quite isolated. It's close to Toulouse, but Toulouse never wanted to drink wines from Gaillac.
Gaillac has always been underestimated. It's not as famous as Burgundy or Loire regions. And I find that as a result of that Gaillac's winemakers underestimate themselves today, even though there is a big potential here for great wines. Today there are around 20 winemakers in Gaillac doing natural wines. 


And how did you find you way to Gaillac?
I learned winemaking in Turkey when I followed a friend of mine who was establishing himself as a farmer there. His daughter wanted to get into winemaking so he planted a whole vineyard with vines imported from Italy next to his farm just for her. I then decided to help them and fell in love with the vineyard in Turkey. 
When I came back to France it was mainly for my own education, as it was rather complicated to do in Turkey. I wanted to work with someone who knew how to make natural wines. In the vineyard in Turkey I was working organically, so I knew that this was the direction I wanted to head in. But they have never let me experiment with making my own wines, so when back in France I didn't want to start without learning about it first; how to work with natural yeasts for example. So I have gotten in touch with the Plageoles family and they said yes. I've spent two years at their domaine in total and have then found a vineyard of my own in 2014 not too far away. I have always worked organically but am organic certified since 2018. 


What about your family? Do you have any winemaking background?
No, not at all. We have a chef but no winemakers!


Do you work alone?
I get people to help with the harvest and I've been employing a worker called Sebastien for two years, mainly for pruning. We have also done a cuvée which he is in sole charge of. But besides that I do everything myself. I'm really excited to have done this year's primeur under the new appelation 'Vin Nature'  which is now on a testrun in France for the next three years! This will be really big. 

How do the other winemakers in Gaillac influence you? 
We've got a great community of winemakers, called Terres de Gaillac. There are about 20 of us and we see each other pretty often. Once a year we take a road trip together to visit other winemakers and get inspired. Last year we've done Beaujolais, this year it will be the Rhône. We exchange a lot of tips and see how we can improve things - and just help each other out generally.


Which wines do you enjoy drinking? 
Le Clos de Grillons from the Rhône, we are going to visit him so I'm really excited.


Which wine fairs will we be able to find you at in the coming few months?
I'll be at Roots 66 on the 27 & 28 of January 2019 in Montpellier and at La Dive Bouteille on the 2 & 3 of February in Angers. That's all I have planned at the moment.


What can you tell us about your future plans?
I'd love to work with animals, but I'm not sure how soon I'll be able to do this. And also this year for the first time I'll be making a 'Vin de Voile', which has to be kept in a barrel for 7 years. So I'm pretty excited to see how that will turn out. 

 

Wines now in stock

Red


2018 (VDF) Gaia Quoi! – Syrah
A saignee of around two days. Is this Gaillac's answer to Lambrusco? Hand-harvested and unfiltered Syrah pet-nat.

2017 (AOC Gaillac) Croizade - Syrah, Duras
Hand-harvested Syrah (40-year-old vines) and Duras (10-year-old vines) blend. Unfiltered and unfined. 


2016 (AOC Gaillac) A la Santé des Mécréants - Duras
Hand-harvested Duras from 40 year old vines. Eight-day maceration with regular pumping over. Aged in fibreglass tanks.


2016 (AOC Gaillac) L'Ancêtre - Braucol
Hand-harvested Braucol from 15-year-old vines.

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New Producers Aboard: 2P Production

2P Production

Cahuzac-sur-Vère, South West, France

2P Production is the side project of Romain, the youngest brother of the prestigious Plageoles family winery in Gaillac, and his wife Fanny Papelard, thus 2P.

Romain primarily takes care of the vines, and Fanny works in the cave during harvest. They make all the winemaking decisions together as a team. All the wines are vinified at the Plageoles winery.
We know Romain well as he is an old friend of Basile. Both of them spent many months working together at Soif on Battersea Rise, London. Romain then decided that it was time to go back and have his own go making wine. We are glad he did.

Wines now in stock

NEW 2016 Merlot 
This is a textbook example of how glorious Merlot can be when done properly. The grapes are hand-harvested and de-stemmed before they undergo spontaneous fermentation in fibreglass tanks. The skins are removed after a short time to limit the amount of extraction and tannin in the wine, yet it has more than enough to give the wine balance and structure. The wine is racked once after alcoholic and malolactic fermentation is complete, then goes back into tank for 6-8 months of ageing. The wine is bottled unfined and unfiltered with a small addition of sulfur. It has delicious ripe, black cherry notes with hints of green pepper and impressive minerality from Gaillac’s granite-rich soils. 

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Mataburro

Rivesaltes, Pyrénées-Orientales, France

The debut vintage from Mataburro has arrived.

These wines jumped out at us on a recent trip to France with their juiciness and sheer drinkability.

Laurent Roger and Melissa Ingrand’s project is named for the railway line that runs just behind their vines. The first in the Perpignan region, on its opening day in 1910 two unfortunate donkeys were killed by trains. Mataburro means “donkey killer”.

Laurent’s family were winemakers and his father farmed 40ha of vines before selling all but three in 2000. Laurent’s journey into natural wine started while working at La Verre Volé for few years. He decided to get his hands dirty and, after studies with Alain Castex of Le Casot des Mailloles, he and Melissa took over his father’s vines in October 2017.

The three hectares are in one piece in Rivesaltes. Old Grenache vines planted by his grandfather in 1949 and young Merlot planted 30 years ago by his father.

To have maximum soil life he does not plough, using green manure planting instead. Vineyards are worked organically with the only treatments used sulphur, copper and some essential oils. Winemaking uses native yeast with no fining or filtration.

Soils are mostly clay on limestone with some galets roulés for the old Grenache vines and deep clays for the Merlot. Climate is Mediterranean with maritime influence. The wines retain great delicacy and freshness, the mark of Laurent’s teacher shining through.

Wines now in stock

Red

NEW 2018 Otium– Grenache
100% Grenache, 80-year-old vines, eight-day whole-bunch maceration (semi-carbo), 20mg/l  S02 on bottling. The name is from Latin and means leisure, retirement, time away from work and business to enjoy art, culture, or simply doing nothing. Bright and youthful, fresh acid, light body but intense cherry fruit.

NEW 2018 Idoine – Merlot, Grenache
80% Merlot, 30-year-old vines; 20% Grenache old vines 80 years; six days whole-bunch maceration (semi-carbo).
Juicy, dry, pure, mineral, like fresh bright candy.

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Ferme De Sept Lunes

Ferme De Sept Lunes

Jean Delobre (left)

Bogy, St Joseph, France

We toasted the birth of the idea that became Under the Bonnet Wines with a bottle of Jean Delobre's formidable Ardeche Syrah VDF. Four years on, imagine how chuffed we are to be able to bring his wines to you.

Le Ferme des Sept Lunes is a 10-hectare farm perched in one of the highest areas of St Joseph. Visiting involves a tortuous 350m road-climb from the valley floor. The hair-pins are not for the faint-hearted.

The latest of three generations on the same farm, Jean converted to organic and biodynamic agriculture in 1997 and only uses sulphur in his wines when it's absolutely unavoidable. The vineyards in the upper part of St.Joseph have a south-eastern exposure, the altitude bringing freshness to the wines. The climate has been tending to Mediterranean in recent year, with wind coming from the north.

Each cuvée is site-specific; with Syrah, Roussane, Marsanne, Viognier and a bit of Gamay planted mostly on granite soils. The wines all show great freshness and purity, the whites all have texture and tension, the reds with depth, aromatics and a fantastic juiciness.

Wines now in stock

White

NEW 2017 VDF Lune Rousse – Roussane
No added SO2, creamy, peachy, long.

NEW 2016 St. Joseph Blanc – Roussane,Marsane
Vinified and aged separately for one year in old oak, waxy, earthy, saline, still retaining freshness and tension.

NEW 2012 St. Joseph Blanc – Roussane, Marsane
The wine developed flor during its one year in barrel. Oxidative, nutty, saline, with an underlying citrus freshness. A very intriguing wine.


Red

NEW 2015 Premier Quartier – Syrah
A blend of parcels, deep concentrated, the most structured wine with the broadest shoulders, sappy and pithy.

NEW 2016 Pleine Lune – Syrah
Vines planted in 1990, Aromatic, juicy, rhubarb, blackberries, violets, long, soft and very easy to drink.

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Friends from Saumur

Mélaric / L' Austral / Folle Berthe / Château Tour Grise

Phillippe Gourdon

Aymeric and Melanie

Pauline and Laurent

David Foubert

Saumur Puy-Notre-Dame, Loire, France

Our friends from Saumur all have something in common: They are connected through Phillippe Gourdon (Château Tour Grise) - a pioneer in biodynamic farming. After Phillippe retired they have started renting off bits of his vineyard to new, younger generation winemakers in an attempt to keep the blood flowing in Saumur. So, what's the story?

Melanie Hunin, from Paris, and Aymeric Hillaire, from Saumur, established Domaine Melaric (a weaving of their names) in 2006 at the Chateau de Baugé, near the village of Puy-Notre-Dame. In 2008, they purchased four hectares of vineyards in Saumur Puy-Notre-Dame with advice from Philippe Gourdon.

Laurent and Pauline (Domaine L'Austral) worked for one year as engineers in France but were not very happy stuck in front of a computer. They travelled and worked in Australia in different farms and in a winery on the west coast. Pauline then studied in Burgundy to become an enologist. During her first internship, Pauline worked with Melaric who introduced them to Françoise and Philippe Gourdon in Le Puy-Notre-Dame, who in turn had vines to lease.

David Foubert (Domaine Folle Berthe), formerly a Parisien journalist, moved to Saumur for a life change and to study winemaking. Aymeric and Melanie have been a key influence; Melanie was David’s teacher at winemaking school, and David’s first vintage in 2014 was made in their cellar. David moved into his own – once-abandoned but now lovingly restored – cellar in 2015. He now farms a mix of parcels leased from Philippe. 

Château Tour Grise

Phillippe's eight-hectare vineyard is made up of six hectares of Cabernet Franc and one each of Chenin Blanc and Pineau D’Aunis. It has been entirely biodynamic since 1998, a crucial status for Phillippe, who wants to create wines that express a true sense of their terroir. In the vineyard life flourishes; the grass remains long and wild all summer long; the vines remain untrimmed and are treated with various special herbal tea preparations of nettles, presses and willows to keep sickness at bay.

The weather systems coming in off the Atlantic are forced upwards by the Mauges hills to the west of Anjou. This causes a rain shadow which gives Saumur more of a continental climate. Le-Puy – being practically the most southerly point – averages less than 200mm/year. The elongated growing season this allows enables the wines to achieve ripeness.

 

Wines now in stock

Domaine Mélaric

NEW 2016 Billes de Roches  - Chenin
Some serious Chenin, soft balanced use of oak. Lean and tense.

NEW  2011 Liquoreux de la Cerisaie  - Chenin   
Powerful, intense and deep with a spicy, savoury edge to the concentrated raisin and marmalade flavours. Incredible concentration and notes of straw, herb and syrup. 


Domaine Folle Berthe

2016 Petit Berthe  - Pineau d'Aunis
Bright, showing just a touch of development. Slightly more body than Pineau d'Aunis from more northerly vineyards, still with characteristic redcurrant fruit and a white pepper finish.

Domaine L' Austral

NEW 2017 Manta  - Cab Franc 
Whole grape vatting. Alcoholic fermentation in indigenous yeasts, nine-month ageing in concrete eggs.

NEW 2017 Jolie Brise Blanc - Chenin 
Direct pressing, alcoholic fermentation in indigenous yeasts. Beginning of the alcoholic fermentation in the tank, finishing in the bottle.

NEW 2017 Jolie Brise Rosé - Cab Franc  
Direct pressing for half of the grapes and short maceration (about three hours) for the other half. This is what gives the intense colour and structure in the mouth. Alcoholic fermentation in indigenous yeasts, beginning of the alcoholic fermentation in vats, finishing in the bottle.

2016 - Cuvee 253 - Cab Franc 
Planted in 2002-03. Manual harvest, Destemmed. Maceration for 60 days – infusion only, indigenous yeasts, aged nine months in concrete eggs.

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