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The genesis of wine is often traced back to the seventh millennium BCE, in the Caucasus, where wine was aged in qvevris (or kvrevris), large jars of 3500 liters buried in the ground. Traditionally, wine has always been what we now consider organic, but the term "organic wine" appeared at the end of the 20th century, in reaction to the hyper-industrialization of wine. Indeed, it was in a context of wine globalization after the Second World War that wine production began to flood the global market with wines full of additives and synthetic chemicals to achieve higher yields and more standardized production, known as conventional wine. Organic wine is therefore a logical response to conventional wine; it aims to be more environmentally friendly and adheres to strict specifications governing wine production.
Organic wine is therefore a wine (red wine, white wine, rosé wine, orange wine, sparkling wine) made from organic farming. Organic wine first met the European specifications of 1991, which governed the principles of organic farming only in the vineyard. It was not until 2012 that new European specifications were published, this time stipulating organic farming regulations also in the cellar.
As mentioned above, wine from organic farming has theoretically always existed, but it is only since 2012 that it has been regulated and controlled by strict specifications in both the vineyard and the cellar. To summarize its obligations, organic wine must be made from certified organic grapes, as well as the sugar, must, or alcohol used during chaptalization and mutage. Also, its specifications prohibit certain winemaking practices such as de-alcoholization, electrodialysis, or thermovinification. The European Union also mandates a sulfite level 50 milligrams per liter lower than conventional wines, i.e., a maximum of 100 milligrams per liter for organic red wines and a maximum of 150 milligrams per liter for organic white wines.
The organic sector is booming, representing nearly 10% of global vineyard area in 2021 with growth of +3.2% compared to 2020 and +78% in 10 years. France is a leader in this field, hosting nearly a third of the world's organic vineyards, followed by its Italian and Spanish neighbors. But organic farming is not only beneficial for the environment; it is also a driver of social well-being. According to a study by Riccardo Vecchio, the organic wine industry creates 50% more jobs than the conventional wine industry, offering more stable jobs with a third of certified farms employing one or more permanent employees, compared to one in five for uncertified farms.
What are the different organic labels recognized in France?
It is INAO that delegates organic farming control and certification activities to independent and approved certification bodies, including Agrocert, Bureau Veritas Certification France, Certipaq bio, Certis, Certisud, Ecocert, Qualisud, Bureau Alpes Contrôles. Every year, certified vineyards are audited by one of these bodies, and in case of irregularity, a unique catalog of measures is applied. A label project to identify farms in the conversion phase (over one or more years) is also under study.
However, for some winemakers, the AB label is too flexible and allows for farming that claims to be organic but has some industrial deviations, notably with the support of large retailers who are trying to seize these new market opportunities. Therefore, two new labels have emerged: Nature & Progrès and Bio Cohérence have stricter specifications, including a ban on sales through mass distribution channels, a measure whose implementation aims to promote short supply chains.
It should be noted that there are many other labels categorizing organic wines that have stricter specifications. Demeter and Biodyvin regulate biodynamic wines or wines from biodynamic winemaking, an esoteric viticulture that considers the vine as a living ecosystem with more rigorous legislation on operations carried out in the cellar. Stricter than biodynamics (or biodynamic wine), the Vin Méthode Nature label proposes a charter for natural wine with an emphasis on low addition of sulfites in the wine and the use of indigenous yeasts. Terra Vitis and Haute Valeur Environnementale are two labels that promote sustainable development, through the preservation of biodiversity, phytosanitary strategies, and fertilization and irrigation management.
Finally, it should also be remembered that many winemakers refuse to be categorized under any label because it would mean denying the principle of the agricultural counter-model: emancipating oneself from standardized norms, not fitting into boxes. This can be seen as a way for the winemaker to assert themselves as unique and with a strong identity.
How is consuming organic wine better for the environment?
One of the great strengths of organic winemakers is their ability to bring life back to the soil and the surrounding flora and fauna. In France, viticulture accounts for 20% of agricultural pesticide use, compared to only 3% of agricultural land. Organic viticulture therefore emerges as an ecological hope: little to no use of phytosanitary products, recourse to organic fertilizers and compost, a reduction of up to one-third of CO2 emissions compared to conventional wine. With better respect for the vine, there is on the one hand a rebirth of the soil, which slows down erosion and promotes subterranean flora and fauna, and on the other hand, a rebirth of pollinators (bees, butterflies...) thanks to an increasing presence of life between the vines (hedges, wild plants, shrubs...).
Organic viticulture also allows for better water management, notably with less water stress (more organic matter in the soil allows for better water retention) and especially less artificial irrigation (the resilience of the vine is preferred). Each cuvée, each vintage, each bottle, in short, each wine from organic farming is therefore directly influenced by climatic hazards, which makes it possible to produce a wine (red wine, white wine, rosé wine, orange wine, sparkling wine) with its own distinct and marked personality.
How is consuming organic wine better for health?
No one can deny that alcohol, and therefore wine, is dangerous for health and should be consumed in moderation. Nevertheless, where conventional wine may contain pesticide residues, additives, and chemicals, organic wine reduces the presence of these harmful substances. It is also full of living bacteria and yeasts that can have benefits for the microbiota, including improved blood vessel function, improved protection of brain cells against cognitive damage, reduced risk of certain types of cancer (especially breast cancer), and better digestion thanks to the production of digestive enzymes stimulated by wine.
Another undeniable health benefit of organic wine is the reduction of sulfites, preservatives widely used in conventional wine to stabilize it. For an equivalent amount consumed, an organic wine will cause fewer headaches the next day than a conventional wine!
What are the advantages of organic farming for winemakers?
When we talk about organic wine, we often think about the health of our planet or our body, but we think much less about the health of our winemakers. Unfortunately, it is not uncommon to observe cases of cancer or respiratory problems among winegrowers, due to synthetic chemicals used such as pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, or fertilizers. Conversely, organic wine aims to drastically reduce these substances, so organic viticulture is beneficial for those who work the vines daily.
Although organic farming requires more physical and organizational effort, it exposes winemakers to significantly fewer toxic products. The use of alternative methods is also beneficial from a psychological point of view, as some producers state that the quality of the organic wine produced offers and brings a deep meaning to their profession, and according to a virtuous circle, this helps maintain a respectful, attentive, and intuitive relationship with their wine work.
But organic farming is also synonymous with short supply chains and therefore support for local economies with a win-win situation for all: the consumer has full traceability of the bottles consumed, and the producer has an income that better reflects the reality of their work. A virtuous system is thus created where the winemaker has more financial resources, allowing them to experiment with new things (new grape varieties, for example) and thus increase consumer satisfaction.
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1042 products
1042 products
BB "Las Hoces" Red 2019
Partida Creus
Partida Creus is the creation of two Piedmontese natives from the Langhe (where wine is well-known), Antonella Gerosa and Massimo Marchiori, who first pursued careers as architects in Barcelona. But the wine bug bit them, and they soon abandoned the big city and its sophistication for the vineyards of southern Catalonia, in Bonastre in Baix-Penedés. There, they found a wealth of abandoned vineyards planted with a dizzying diversity of traditional Catalan grape varieties, which they passionately revived to save these varieties – and their wines – from oblivion. For them, it is not just a matter of heritage rescue, no: it is a matter of taste and nature. Of natural wines, which they will never stop making from now on on these sandy, poor, clay-limestone or clay-gravel soils, poor and poorly irrigated, where the vines suffer to give their best juice. This is why their estate is as important from a winemaking point of view as from a historical point of view - we are talking here about the history of the vine in Catalonia.
Massimo and Antonella practice organic, biodynamic, entirely manual and natural viticulture in order to give new life to these wines. Vinyater, sumoll, garrut, monastrell, ull de perdiu, ull de llebre, sumoll, queixal de llop, cariñena, trepat, subirat parent, maccabeu, parellada, pansé, vinel.lo, bobal, cartoixà vermell or xarel.lo: Partida Creus is a veritable conservatory of native Catalan grape varieties. It also grows moscatel, grenache, merlot and cabernet (among others). Few wineries can boast growing so many different grape varieties. The wines reflect this diversity, with the winemakers striving to best convey the signature of the soil and the grape variety: single-variety wines are common among them, alongside extensive blends, all in the styles dear to Catalonia: still wine, "ancestral" sparkling wine, and even vermouth. The bottles themselves are works of art: bare glass, simply marked with two large stenciled initials that denote the vintage. The wines, fresh, vibrant, lush but always straight and impeccably juicy and fruity, breathe life. The arrival of a Partida Creus at the table always elicits exclamations of joy.
This 100% Bobal is a racy and finely wild red from the Las Hoces plot, built on a grape variety common in Spain but whose expression here is very original. Dark cherry red color; on the nose, candy, sweet flowers, fresh fruits, violet, thyme. On the palate, a lot of distinction: a straight acidity and morello cherry, ripe plum, black pepper, a small saline touch on the finish. Serve well chilled.
La Barbacana Red 2019,
La Senda
La Bodega La Senda is the creation of Diego Losada, a native of Bierzo, a region northwest of the province of León, bordered to the north by Asturias and to the west by Galicia. Pilgrims traveling to Santiago de Compostela via the Camino Francés or the Camino de Invierno can admire its magnificent landscapes, where ancient vineyards cover the hilltops. Viticulture dates back to Roman times, but the region was so traumatized by the phylloxera crisis that vines were not replanted until the mid-20th century, without massive uprooting, giving these vines an average age of forty to seventy years. Born in Ponferrada, in the northern Bierzo, Diego was never one for compromise. Resolutely radical, with a love of freedom and rigor, he first applied this disposition to music in the heavy metal band he formed with his high school friends. It was to wine, later, that he would devote this same passion, studying organic chemistry at university and learning the scientific aspects of viticulture. But the scientific rigidity and conventional methods, discovered on some of the estates where he worked, did not satisfy him. Attracted by a viticulture closer to the land, Diego recovered a few plots to showcase, as naturally as possible, the terroir of Bierzo. In 2012, he created the La Senda estate on the outskirts of his hometown, whose name means "the path." His wines will be like him: honest, frank, natural and expressive. Without the appellation of origin, they are the pure reflection of their soils and climate, of the personality and energy of their creator. La Barbacana is named after the plot that produced the grapes, a vineyard more than a century old planted on schist, ferrous and quartz soils at an altitude of 650 meters. The grape varieties are mainly Garnacha Tintorera (90%), with ten percent Mencia. The harvest is macerated in chestnut barrels and pressed before the end of fermentation, after which the must rests for eleven months in 650-liter chestnut barrels. Pure, deep, complex, this wine has a beautiful acidity and an equally beautiful length. It is a fruity and juicy red that will accompany the most rustic specialties of the Spanish terroir.
Natural wine without added sulfites.
Cade Meu Carnaval Sparkling Rosé 2019,
Chardonnay (50%), Grenache Gris (40%), and Trousseau (10%). But where has my carnival gone? asks this vintage, and it won't take long to find the answer: the party will begin as soon as the bottle is opened, because this undisgorged pet' nat' exudes good humor.
Natural wine with no added sulfites.
Côtes du Rhône Rouge 2021
Les Grandes Serres
A good Côtes-du-Rhône, without the slight bite of sulfites, the "vin de ballon" restored to its natural fullness and innocence, does that tempt you? Here's one for you, produced by the Castel-Papal estate of Les Grandes Serres. This rich, dense, and fruity wine is made from 80% Syrah, with 5% of each of the following grape varieties: Grenache, Mourvèdre, Cinsault, all grown on limestone and sandstone soils. Harvested by hand, the grapes are destemmed and macerated on the skins for three weeks. After pressing, the wine rests for eight months in stainless steel vats. This Côtes-du-Rhône is part of the estate's organic and natural Comics series and will always be perfect when you want a warm, fruity red wine that's suitable for all occasions.
Find out more
Everyone knows where Châteauneuf-du-Pape is, but how well do we really know this appellation? The Domaine des Grandes Serres represents both its excellence and its vitality. Produces exceptional estate and merchant wines, both red and white, it harvests, buys grapes, vinifies, and ages over a wide area, centered around Châteauneuf and the southern Côtes-du-Rhône and including more peripheral areas such as Lirac and the Costières de Nîmes. In Châteauneuf-du-Pape itself, the estate owns twelve hectares. Created in 1977, it has long been founded on respect for the environment and the terroir. Currently, a large portion of its vintages are organic and without added sulfites, though it doesn't boast about it publicly. Samuel Montgermont, the estate's general manager, modestly explains that the geological and climatic conditions, particularly the mistral wind, favor the health of the vineyard and allow for the elimination of additives. Covering the entire range of white and red wines from the Midi and all their grape varieties, the estate is now committed to producing natural wines under labels that take themselves in no way seriously, but the wines in the bottles—each bearing the name of its appellation—are solid and serious, in addition to being fresh and flavorful.
Combe du Temps White 2021,
Les Vignes du Domaine du Temps
La Combe du Temps Blanc is a cuvée from Les Vignes du Domaine du Temps, in Cabardès (Languedoc). Full-bodied and expressive, it is lively and dry with a lovely hint of melted wood. Elegance and a slightly rich note are traits found in all the whites from this estate. Its balance will delight everyone and open up numerous flavor pairings. The blend combines the North, West, and South: 60% Chenin, 20% Roussanne, and 20% Sémillon. Everything ferments naturally, using indigenous yeasts, and La Combe du Temps is aged for a year in old oak barrels. No sulfites are added.
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The Domaine du Temps is located in Cabardès, a small region of Languedoc that was once a subdivision of Cathar Country. Stretching from the southern slope of the Montagne Noire to the city of Carcassonne, it is bordered to the west by the Lauragais and to the east by the Minervois. Hilly, wild, and rich in Mediterranean flora, it is a preserved ecosystem, especially since the Domaine du Temps, in the Font Juvénal area, is a magical place: around a former 18th-century priory, sixty hectares of forests and scrubland protect thirteen hectares of vineyards on stony clay-limestone soils. The balance between dryness and coolness is a boon for viticulture, with a wide range of grape varieties. In addition to the Languedoc grape varieties (Syrah, Grenache, Roussanne, Viognier, Muscat), Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Sémillon, and Chenin are grown. The estate has been Ecocert certified since 1998, is entirely managed biodynamically, and has been dedicated to natural wine since 2015. The work in the vineyard and cellar is methodical, rigorous, and attentive: only the best grapes are kept, resulting in small yields, and destemming is determined based on the ripeness of the bunch. The reds are vinified using carbonic maceration of individual grape varieties, with the blending taking place before the year's aging. The whites are slowly and gently pressed to extract only the best from the grapes. These precautions produce smooth, controlled wines of great integrity, with very supple tannins. They are fresh, delicious, and expressive.
Fleurie Grand-Pré Red 2019,
Domaine Bélicard
Nestled in the heart of Beaujolais, the Fleurie AOP appellation is renowned for its elegant and floral wines. Domaine Bélicard, certified organic (AB), delivers a remarkably fine cuvée, produced from 36-year-old vines planted in granite soils.
A Fleurie of elegance and depth
Vinified using traditional whole-bunch maceration in old wooden vats, this wine benefits from gentle extraction, respecting all the delicacy of Gamay Noir. Its 4-day aging preserves the freshness and pure expression of the terroir.
A floral nose and a full palate
From the first nose, this organic Fleurie reveals deep aromas of candied red fruits, enhanced with floral and spicy notes. On the palate, the balance is perfect between roundness and finesse, with an elegant and persistent finish.
What to enjoy this wine with?
Ideal at 14-16°C, this wine goes wonderfully with grilled fish, salads and barbecues. Its 5-year aging potential will allow for a beautiful aromatic evolution.
Adonis Red 2022,
Adonis is the red counterpart of Aphrodite and a superb organic (Ecocert) and natural dry white wine from the Coteaux du Loir, vinified by Renaud Guettier of La Grapperie, without additives, sulfites, or chemical additives.
Vinification
Adonis is made from Pineau d'Aunis, one of the oldest grape varieties in the Loire Valley Western. The vines, pruned in goblet form, are on average seventy-five years old and grow on black silt and limestone (tuffeau) soils. The harvest is manual, transported on horseback. Aging is twelve months in barrels.
Tasting
Draped in a beautiful garnet color, Adonis offers a complex nose of red fruits: strawberry, cherry, smoked blackberry, sweet herbs… On the palate, a beautiful structure between black pepper and raspberry. Spicy, fruity and peppery, with a lovely sweet and yeasty note on the attack that adds to its deliciousness, it is a gastronomic wine. You can pair it with oily fish (tuna, mackerel, sardines), sea or freshwater fish stews with red wine, but also roasts or grilled beef, charcuterie and traditional stews.
Learn more about Renaud Guettier and La Grapperie
In the Coteaux du Loir appellation, La Grapperie is the name of the estate of Renaud Guettier, who can be described as a master of Chenin, but also of Pineau d'Aunis, which is one of the oldest grape varieties in the Loire Valley.
The estate
Renaud's 60 hectares of vines, on the hillside, are protected from the north winds by the Bercé forest. Depending on the altitude, the terroirs are predominantly clay, flint or sand. The grape varieties are the two traditionally authorized in the appellation: Chenin for the whites and Pineau d'Aunis for 90% of the reds, the rest consisting of a few ares of Côt, Gamay and Grolleau. Some vines are more than a hundred years old.
In the vineyard and the winery
The entire estate is cultivated organically. The soils are worked and all viticultural interventions are manual, including the harvest, carried out at full maturity, which is reflected in the fullness and smoothness of the wines. For the reds, the Pineau d'Aunis is partially destemmed (depending on the plot) and the macerations are quite long, three to four weeks, with punching down, to promote aging potential. The wines are aged in barrels for between twelve and twenty-four months, then racked, blended and bottled without filtration. For the whites, the Chenins are pressed directly at low pressure then put into barrels with complete malolactic fermentation, for at least eighteen months, malolactic included, and sometimes up to thirty-six months.
Esprit Attila Red 2018
Anthony Tortul loves old vineyards: he devotes his life to finding and vinifying them. Just as there are landless shepherds, he can be defined as a landless winegrower, in other words, a wine merchant whose scope extends throughout Languedoc and, eastward, as far as Châteauneuf-du-Pape, in search of the best terroirs. Born in Foix, with six years of experience as a wine technician and oenologist in various vineyards in the south of France, he created La Sorga in 2008. His enthusiasm leads him on a path of love at first sight, and each of these loves is a vineyard. The result is a dizzying mosaic of natural, lively and spirited wines, which reinvents itself each year with around thirty cuvées per vintage. Few winemakers can include such a variety of grape varieties: the whole of southern France is there with muscat, grenache, picpoul, mauzac, carignan, cinsault, marsanne, alicante, braucol, duras, viognier, len-de-l’el, and tutti quanti.
Esprit Attila is made up of sixty percent carignan (one hundred and thirteen year old vines) and forty percent syrah. These two grape varieties are harvested on the ferruginous clay-limestone soils of Lagrasse, in the Corbières. Vinification, in whole bunches, is done in separate grape varieties for ninety days in quasi-infusion before blending, followed by aging in concrete vats for a year and a second aging of one year in bottles, like a great Spanish red. The nose is immediately very aromatic and we find in abundance the characters of the two grape varieties: blueberry, blackcurrant, black olive… The palate is full, delicious, extremely fresh and typical of its vintage, with notes of violet.
Natural wine without added sulfites.
L’Intrépide blanc 2020
Domaine Einhart
A Pinot Gris maceration wine exists, and it can reach incredible heights when vinified with care. The twenty-five-year-old vines are harvested by hand; the grapes are destemmed. Maceration, using indigenous yeasts, takes between four and eight days. Aging in foudres on fine lees precedes bottling without filtration. From the vineyard to the cellar, this wine was made without any additives. Decanting is recommended so that it can spread its wings and express its powerful and complex notes.
To find out more
Located in the northern part of the Alsatian vineyard, horizontally above Strasbourg, the Einhart estate is a ten-hectare family property whose vines are located on the hillsides that rise between the Alsace plain and the Vosges mountains. The soil is clay-limestone and rich in fossils (muschelkalk, i.e. shell limestone and oolitic limestone, and lettenkohle or dolomitic limestone). Since 1990, Nicolas Einhart has been at the helm, now assisted by his son Théo. True to his commitments to the TIFLO association, of which he is a co-founder, Nicolas devotes his winemaking to protecting the land and biodiversity, making wine without additives, refusing harmful phytosanitary products, and maintaining ecological refuge areas. His estate has been certified organic since 2011. Like Jean-Marc Dreyer, he is firmly focused on skin maceration and produces white maceration wines (orange wines) in addition to a Pinot Noir red. Entirely manual harvesting, destemming of the bunches, light punching down, and delicate pressing are characteristic of the estate, as well as the separate vinification of each terroir, aging on lees, and the absence of filtration before bottling. The wines are made from pure grapes, lively, powerful, invigorating, and reflect the minerality of the beautiful terroirs of the Vosges foothills.
Farmhouse Cider 2017,
Florian Bourrienne makes ciders for aging, intended to evolve over the years, and this sets him apart from most other producers. His orchard is located in the heart of Calvados, in the Pays d'Auge, but outside the AOC (Protected Designation of Origin) in order to preserve the freedom and uniqueness of his ciders. We can, without hesitation, call it natural cider, because the cider maker goes beyond organic to respect the traditional production method, which is delicate, patient, and requires a tremendous amount of work. From his fifteen-hectare orchard planted with tall stems, he produces ciders for aging, excellent to drink in their youth but sumptuous after several years. The blend is carefully measured according to the characteristics of each vintage. The fruit production is entirely organic and the fermentation processes—there are two for traditional cider—are slow and patient, so that the cider is made the right way, using natural yeasts. These are preserved in the cider thanks to a light filtration that respects all the living elements capable of polishing the taste and aromas, but also facilitates the formation of foam, which must be just right: neither too strong nor too weak. It's difficult to manage, but the result is well worth it. These are mastered ciders, eminently delicious, marked by an extraordinary sweetness and roundness of apple. Over time, they acquire notes of acidity and astringency that gracefully reinforce their beautiful aromatic palette. These are ciders of taste and pleasure, as delicious at the table as they are as an aperitif.
Obviously more evolved than the 2018, this 2017 vintage has a more sustained acidity in an overall still very marked by sweetness. Round, full-bodied, slightly astringent, it is approaching adulthood and you can drink it now or keep it for three to five years. The apple flavor is enhanced with a remarkable freshness. A sunny cider that puts you in a good mood.
Brut Nature Blanc de Blancs Malvasia Sparkling White 2017
Clos Lentiscus
In Sitges, Catalonia, Clos Lentiscus is a winery located in the heart of the Garraf Natural Park. Manel Avinyo and his brother Joan took over the family estate, which Manel renamed Clos Lentiscus. Even though Barcelona is only a half-hour drive away, the beauty of the landscape is striking and the immersion in nature is complete: Mediterranean forests rub shoulders with Catalan scrubland (thyme, rosemary, rockrose, and the mastic tree, which gave the estate its name, etc.). The Penedès region also has a long winemaking history. Nestled in its gentle hills is Clos Lentiscus, in the Penedés appellation, on twenty hectares of sandy and clay-limestone soils facing due south at an altitude of 225 meters. According to historical documents, the family of Manel and Joan Avinyo has been established there since at least the 14th century. For a long time, the grapes were sold to local cooperatives, but since the two brothers took over the estate, organic and biodynamic farming has replaced conventional practices, the entire harvest goes into the house vintages, and organic and biodynamic practices have allowed this beautiful property to reconnect with its former prestige: in the 19th century, its wines were sold in France and as far away as the Americas. Very quickly, Manel received a nickname: The Bubbleman, a tribute to his talent for vinifying cavas, these sparkling whites characteristic of the northeast of the Iberian Peninsula, from native varieties for which Catalonia holds the secret: sumoll, ull de llebre, xarel·lo, malvasia of Sitges, cartoixà vermell, cariñena (carignan), accompanied by tempranillo and muscat of Alexandria. The vines are old, sometimes centuries old. No synthetic additives are used in the vineyard, and operations such as planting, pruning, de-budding and harvesting are dictated by the lunar phases. Pollination is facilitated by the presence of beehives; sheep contribute to fertilization and control of the plant cover. Ringo, the white horse, is responsible for working the soil.
Purity, elegance and a crisp minerality due to limestone characterize the productions of Clos Lentiscus. The note of controlled oxidation, when it is felt, does not dominate the tasting and the wines are never deviant. Cavas are known for being exuberant, but those of Clos Lentiscus never have more than two grams of residual sugar per liter. The estate also produces still wines, red, white and rosé.
Made entirely of Malvasia (Malvasia), an ancient Mediterranean grape variety that thrives particularly well in Sitges, this cava offers fine, creamy bubbles and a pale gold color, deeper than that of most wines of its style. Its olfactory notes of white fruits and lemon peel, its creamy, intense and fresh flavor with tropical accents have everything to seduce. Its aromatic persistence is remarkable. It is worth trying with foie gras.
Grande Pestilence Rouge 2019
La Sorga
Antony Tortul loves old vineyards: he devotes his life to finding and vinifying them. Just as there are landless shepherds, he can be defined as a landless winegrower, in other words, a wine merchant whose area of activity extends throughout Languedoc and, eastward, as far as Châteauneuf-du-Pape, in search of the best terroirs. Born in Foix, with six years of experience as a wine technician and oenologist in various vineyards in the south of France, he created La Sorga in 2008. His enthusiasm leads him on a path filled with favorites, and each of these favorites is a vineyard. The result is a dizzying mosaic of natural, lively, and spirited wines, which reinvents itself each year with around thirty cuvées per vintage. Few winemakers can list such a variety of grape varieties on their menu: the whole of southern France is there with muscats, grenaches, picpoul, mauzac, carignan, cinsault, marsanne, alicante, braucol, duras, viognier, len-de-l’el, and tutti quanti.
The label and the name with their pestilential connotations should not make this wine pass for what it is not: no morbid stench will disturb your experience once the bottle is opened. The nose, on the contrary, is of great aromatic complexity: black fruits, humus, white pepper, peony, and on the palate the citrus peel typical of the schist soils of the Faugères region and particularly Cabrerolles, from which this wine comes. The texture is very rounded, the finish is long and already very straight! No sulfites, no filtration, nothing else for that matter. The blend is made from sixty percent Cinsault (sixty-five-year-old vines), twenty percent Grenache (sixty-five-year-old vines), and twenty percent Carignan (sixty-five-year-old vines). Vinification is done in whole bunches in a quasi-infusion for sixty days for Cinsault and forty-five days for the other grape varieties. Once everything is blended, aging is one year in vats. It will keep well for a good ten years.
Natural wine with no added sulfites.
Divin Poison White 2021
De Vini
Divin Poison is a dry, organic, biodynamic, and natural white wine made by Christophe Bosque of Domaine De Vini from Melon de Bourgogne grapes grown in the Nantes region. Classified as a Vin de France and harvested from gabbro soils characteristic of the area, it has all the qualities of a (very good) Muscadet, except for the appellation.
Beaujolais Lancié Red 2019,
Domaine Bélicard
In the heart of the Beaujolais Villages AOP, Domaine Bélicard creates an authentic and delicious cuvée with its Beaujolais Lancié 2019. Coming from a vineyard rooted in granite soils, this wine is a true ode to the Gamay Noir grape variety, enhanced by traditional carbonic maceration vinification. With its 53-year-old vines, this cuvée perfectly illustrates the finesse and freshness characteristic of the best Beaujolais Villages.
A Gamay to taste!
Vinified using carbonic maceration, a typical Beaujolais process that enhances the fruit and supple tannins, this wine is then aged for 9 months in wooden vats, giving it both roundness and liveliness. Its controlled aging highlights all the freshness and delicacy of the terroir, without masking the aromatic purity of the Gamay.
A floral nose and a delicious palate
Upon opening, the Beaujolais Lancié 2019 reveals an expressive nose, dominated by floral notes and crisp red fruits (cherry, redcurrant). On the palate, the balance is perfect between freshness and deliciousness, with fine tannins that provide a silky texture and a juicy, thirst-quenching finish.
How to enjoy this bottle?
Served slightly chilled at 14-16°C, this wine for sharing is perfect as an aperitif, but also with summer barbecues, a charcuterie board or simple, convivial dishes. With an aging potential of 5 years, it will evolve towards even more complex aromas.
Xarel lo Macabeu White 2019
Xarel lo-Macabeu is, as its name suggests, a blend of equal parts Catalan Xarel lo and Macabeu grape varieties grown in Pla de Penedès (Alto Penedés) on clay-limestone soils at an altitude of between 200 and 230 meters. The vines are between 35 and 45 years old. The grapes are sorted, crushed, and macerated with the stems and skins, two days for the Xarel lo and one day for the Macabeu. Fermentation takes place in stainless steel tanks and the two grape varieties are blended after alcoholic fermentation. The wine is fragrant, dry, aromatic, mineral, with balanced acidity and a touch of controlled oxidation.
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Cyclic Beer Farm is a duo of Barcelona friends, Alberto and Joshua. Based in the Catalan capital, they have two sides to their business: beer (Cyclic Beer) and wine (Cyclic Wine). The beers, inspired by the Belgian model, come in surprising and colorful ranges where expertly measured yeast cocktails and house brews combine with varied macerations of fruits, vegetables, herbs and grape marc from traditional Catalan varieties, the latter taken after the fermentation of their wines - because the second side is the wine, made exclusively from native Catalan grape varieties. As merchant winemakers, Alberto and Joshua personally harvest by hand from organic wineries throughout Catalonia and bring the harvest back to their brewery-cum-winery workshop in La Sagrera (Barcelona). There, they sort the grapes, tread them by foot, and ferment the must using exclusively indigenous yeasts. Depending on the type of wine, skin maceration takes place on the skins and stems for between one and three days for whites and between six and fifteen days for reds. The free-run juice is then transferred without pressing into stainless steel tanks where fermentation continues before bottling. The skins and stems, and sometimes part of the juice, are then used for the maceration of saison beers: an interesting synergy between beer and wine. No sulfites are added during vinification; nothing is added to or removed from the wine, which is never filtered. The harvest and other viticultural operations are decided according to the lunar calendar.
XLC Xarel Lo Culinaries White 2022
Partida Creus
Culinaries Exclusive! This fruit of our collaboration with our favorite Catalan-Piedmontese, Antonella and Massimo, is a superb dry white from Catalonia, a unique and rare cuvée, and we are proud to present its first vintage. Classified as Vino de Mesa (table wine) and composed entirely of the indigenous Catalan Xarel·lo grape variety, this Culinaries cuvée is modeled on the estate's XL Xarel·lo, with notable differences. The wine is aged for a longer period and is done in demi-muids (large 500-650 liter barrels), which provides micro-oxygenation that enhances its complexity and fullness. It is therefore an "augmented" version of the XL, and it already tastes admirably, with a promise of great stability. Smoky, mineral, this Vino de Mesa (table wine) is already a classic, offering a pure and typical expression of xarel·lo. You can pair XL Xarel·lo Culinaries with the best of seafood, fish, white meats, roasted, grilled or cooked poultry in sauce...
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Partida Creus is an important estate, both in terms of wine and history – we are talking here about the history of the vine in Catalonia. Massimo Marchiori and Antonella Gerosa, originally from Piedmont – and even coming from the Langhe region, where they know a lot about wines – first pursued a career as architects in Barcelona. But the wine bug tickles them, and soon they abandon the big city and its sophistication for the vineyards of southern Catalonia, in Bonastre in Baix-Penedés. There they find a quantity of abandoned vineyards planted with a dizzying diversity of traditional Catalan grape varieties, which they passionately revive to save these varieties – and their wines – from oblivion. For them, it's not just a matter of heritage rescue, no: it's a matter of taste and nature. Of natural wines, which they will never stop making from now on on these sandy, poor, clay-limestone or clay-gravel soils, poor and poorly irrigated, where the vines suffer to produce their best juice. Massimo and Antonella practice organic, biodynamic viticulture, entirely manual and natural to give new life to these wines. Vinyater, sumoll, garrut, monastrell, ull de perdiu, ull de llebre, sumoll, queixal de llop, cariñena, trepat, subirat parent, maccabeu, parellada, pansé, vinel·lo, bobal, cartoixà vermell or xarel·lo: Partida Creus is a veritable conservatory of native Catalan grape varieties. It also grows moscatel, grenache, merlot and cabernet (among others). Few wineries can boast growing so many different grape varieties. The wines reflect this diversity, with the winemakers striving to best convey the signature of the soil and the grape variety: single-variety wines are common among them, alongside extensive blends, all in the styles dear to Catalonia: still wine, "ancestral" sparkling wine, and even vermouth. The bottles themselves are works of art: bare glass, simply marked with two large stenciled initials that denote the vintage. The wines, fresh, vibrant, lush yet always straightforward and impeccably juicy and fruity, exude life. The arrival of a Partida Creus at the table always elicits cries of satisfaction.
Auguste Red 2019,
Sous le Végétal
Auguste is the only dry red wine from the Sous le Végétal project. It takes its name from the indigenous Greek avgoustiatis grape variety, from which it is made entirely. It is a light wine that, through its Mediterranean nature, recalls something of the reds of the Jura: a characteristic earthy and mineral note, plenty of character—prune, clove, anise, vanilla, cherry jam, rich tannins, and, on the finish, a salinity due to the mineral-rich soils (particularly schist and limestone) of the island of Samos. The fruity notes remain taut and elegant. Decanting is recommended. The vines grow on the foothills of Mount Karvounis, not far from the village of Pagondas. The wine is a blend of four types of rock on two plots. The Avgoustiatis ('the august') grape variety is a rare variety, the first red grape variety harvested in Greece. It is cultivated organically in conversion to permaculture. The vines, pruned in the 'goblet' style, are harvested by hand on the morning of August 15th. The wine is first obtained by a forty-day maceration of whole bunches in stainless steel vats. Half of the vinification is done in 500-liter Stockinger barrels and the other half in ovoid concrete vats. The wine is completely additive-free, unfiltered, and bottled by gravity. The black bottle ensures the wine ages and the closure is made with a cork sealed with a mixture of paraffin and black beeswax.
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Under the plant lies the mineral: this is the meaning of this concept of natural vintages created in Greece, on the island of Samos, by a team of friends gathered around the winemakers Jason Ligas and Patrick Bouju. The successful enterprise marks a renaissance of the thousand-year-old vineyard of this island in the North Aegean Sea, which owes its dense and woody vegetation to various nicknames received in Antiquity, from Dryoussa (“covered with oaks”) to Kyparissia (“covered with cypresses”) and Melamphyllos (“With dark foliage”). This natural wealth covers a unique and varied subsoil: volcanic rocks and notably basalts, limestone, quartz, pink granites, schists, iron cast irons… The idea was born from Jason’s meeting with the Samos Wine Cooperative. Patrick Bouju soon joined the project. The five vintages of Sous le Végétal—Livia, Hüpnos, Octave, Palli & Genesia and Auguste—are produced on around sixty plots of Samos Muscat à petits grains (and Avgoustiatis for the red vintage), between 400 and 910 meters above sea level. Each plot is vinified separately. For vinification, four types of containers are used: amphorae, concrete eggs, stainless steel vats and 500-liter barrels. Each locality is vinified in at least two of the four containers and the aging takes place in black bottles sealed with wax. No added sulfur, no filtration: Samos' winemakers are rediscovering wine as it was made in their childhood. This is one of the wonders of natural wine: it allows, through the most innovative projects, to reconnect with forgotten traditions. Sous le Végétal also takes under its wing the A la Natural vintages by Patrick Bouju.
Ull de Llebre Sumoll Red 2019,
Cyclic Beer Farm is a duo of friends from Barcelona, Alberto and Joshua. Based in the Catalan capital, they have two sides to their business: beer (Cyclic Beer) and wine (Cyclic Wine). The beers, inspired by the Belgian model, are available in surprising and colorful ranges where expertly measured yeast cocktails and house brews combine with varied macerations of fruits, vegetables, herbs and grape marc from traditional Catalan varieties, the latter taken after the fermentation of their wines - because the second part is the wine, made exclusively from native Catalan grape varieties. As merchant winemakers, Alberto and Joshua themselves harvest by hand from organic wineries throughout Catalonia and bring the harvest to their winery-brewery workshop in La Sagrera (Barcelona). There they sort the grapes, tread them under foot and vat the must using exclusively indigenous yeasts. Depending on the type of wine, skin maceration takes place on the skins and stems for between one and three days for the whites and between six and fifteen days for the reds. The free-run juice is then transferred without pressing into stainless steel tanks where fermentation continues before bottling. The skins and stems, and sometimes part of the juice, are then used for the maceration of saison beers: an interesting synergy between beer and wine. No sulfites are added during vinification; nothing is added or removed from the wine, which is never filtered. The harvest and other viticultural operations are decided according to the lunar calendar.
At the time we tasted this red wine, it was still searching a little, but at the time of writing, it must have found its place and be resting comfortably on its balanced tannins and fruity complexity. It is a well-balanced wine between body presence and lightness, round and aromatic. It is a blend of Catalan grape varieties Ull de Llebre (70%) and Sumoll (30%) harvested by hand in Torrelavit (Upper Penedès) and Mas Llorenç (Lower Penedès) on limestone and clay soils. The Ull de Llebre vines are young (fifteen years old) and the Sumoll vines are very old (up to one hundred years old). The altitude of the plots is between 230 and 260 meters. The harvest, entirely manual, is sorted, and then ten percent is trodden by foot. A semi-carbonic maceration follows for twenty-seven days, after which the wine completes its fermentation in stainless steel vats.
Himmel auf Erden Rosé 2018
An exceptional Austrian rosé
Forget everything you thought you knew about rosé. Himmel auf Erden 2018, a natural wine from Burgenland, challenges the rules with boldness and elegance. Made from Cabernet Franc, this Austrian rosé reveals a vibrant profile, far from the expected standards.
A unique and unadorned rosé
Made without filtration or added sulfur, this wine is the pure expression of the fruit and terroir. After careful destemming and crushing, it benefits from a year of aging in large barrels, giving it depth and complexity. The inspiration behind its name comes from a work by the iconoclastic artist Alfred Hrdlicka, adding an artistic dimension to this atypical cuvée.
An explosive nose, a palate full of life
Upon opening, Himmel auf Erden 2018 reveals an explosion of aromas: wild raspberry, wild berries, tomato leaf and a hint of aromatic herbs. On the palate, the energy is striking: a beautiful mineral tension, a light natural effervescence, and an irresistible sapidity that prolongs the pleasure.
Pairings and service
Ideal at 10-12°C, it will pair well with Mediterranean cuisine, plant-based dishes, and fine charcuterie. With no added sulfites, this rosé can be enjoyed in its purest form and promises a unique sensory experience.
With Himmel auf Erden 2018, rediscover rosé in a new light. A lively, bold wine.
