Still Wines

P'tit Grobis Blanc 2020,

Nicolas Chemarin
As expected, all-granitic Chardonnay, the white counterpart to the P'tit Grobis cuvée, classified as a Vin de France, offers a pale, opalescent yellow color. The sensations of this white Beaujolais-Villages are complex and difficult to summarize: first, on the nose and palate, the lactic, yeasty note is present. The fresh acidity is accompanied by flint, notes of white flowers, and a youthful expressiveness. Drinking young, it expresses its youthfulness well, and a little age reveals white fruits, a slight richness, and sweet notes. The harvest is directly pressed, followed by settling during which the winemaker takes care not to steal all the fine lees from the wine.

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Nicolas Chemarin, nicknamed "P'tit Grobis" as a resident of Marchampt (Beaujolais), is the fourth generation of winemaker on his family wine estate in the Beaujolais-Villages appellation, on stony land where he crafts wines of surprising depth and sincerity. In 2005, he took over two hectares of vines from his father and in 2006 he produced his first vintages. In 2008, he acquired other vines and decided to devote himself solely to his estate, whose very steep terroir consists of poor, rocky soils on gray granite rock. The vines rest on the bedrock through very thin soil, and their roots plunge deep into the rock. Depending on the configuration of the soil, the vines are pruned in goblet or raised on stakes. Their average age is eighty years. The grape varieties, Gamay and Chardonnay, are classically Beaujolais. Nicolas also cultivates two other terroirs in the Régnié appellation: Les Bullats, with light, filtering sandy soils, and La Haute Ronze, very close to Morgon, whose deeper, clayey soils produce full-bodied wines. The vintages undergo long macerations (from 18 to 30 days) with punching down and temperature control (Nicolas works cold, around 20°C). The aging is done partially in thermoregulated concrete vats for a third, the remaining two thirds passing into barrels of four to ten wines in order to provide oxygenation but little or no woody sensation. Nicolas Chemarin is already very well known in the natural world for his sweet and fruity vintages, wines of pleasure, and for vintages from difficult and magnificent terroirs, provided with admirable and complex mineral, aromatic and spicy notes.

Volnay 1er Cru Les Lurets Rouge 2020,

Domaine de Chassorney
Full of opulent, balanced, and dense fruit, this beautiful premier cru offers notes of red and black fruits, and a ripe and flavorful cherry. A voluptuous wine to be enjoyed at special occasions. The Lurets plot, in the Volnay AOC, produced this Pinot Noir. Its steep terroir, facing west-southeast, is located between 230 and 280 meters above sea level. The soils are mainly composed of pink limestone supported by white schist pebbles. The grapes macerate in whole bunches. The aging is approximately one year in barrels.

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Through his entirely natural work, Frédéric Cossard gives voice to the terroirs and Burgundy wines, undeformed by agricultural chemicals. Having observed, during his years of trading, the existence of harmful viticultural practices, the winemaker used this counter-example to practice unadulterated viticulture. Thus, he produces vintages of purity and elegance without artifice that are among the most sought-after in Burgundy. Frédéric worked for some time as a wine broker before creating the Chassorney estate with his partner Laure in 1996: initially a few ares of vines in Saint-Romain, Auxey-Duresses and Savigny-lès-Beaune, and currently ten hectares spread across the Nuits-Saint-Georges, Pommard, Volnay, Bourgogne-Hautes-Côtes-de-Beaune and Bourgogne appellations. In 2006, he created his own wine trading house and buys organic grapes to vinify, according to his style and convictions, great vintages such as Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet, Chassagne-Montrachet, Pommard, Nuits-Saint-Georges, Chambolle-Musigny, Vosne-Romanée and several Beaujolais crus. The practice is not limited to Burgundy, as vintages are made from grapes purchased in the Jura, Languedoc, and elsewhere. At his farm, the soil and vines are worked as naturally as possible: regular horse-drawn ploughing, no addition of chemical fertilizers or weedkillers. The vines are tended according to biodynamic principles: homeopathic treatments based on essential oils, copper, and sulfur in minimal doses. The harvest is entirely manual, carried out at full maturity, at the end of October. Red or white, classic Burgundies or more atypical or less "regional" bottles, Frédéric's vintages are rare and sought-after wines, which sometimes require waiting.

Es d’aqui Trachéo Red 2019

Jean-Louis Pinto

A superb wine, refined and fresh, beautifully fruity. A nose of raspberry, rose, licorice, and Languedoc garrigue. On the palate, very well-integrated tannins. Beautiful energy, sunshine, and plenty of structure. This is a pure Grenache, made from grapes grown in the schist soils of Cabrerolles, in the Faugères region. It has a aging potential of six or seven years, but can be enjoyed now. The harvest macerates for twenty-three days in whole bunches and the wine is aged in resin vats.

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A child of Ariège, Jean-Louis Pinto chose to stay in the country and make wines that resemble their terroir, hence the name Es d’Aqui (“It’s, it’s from here”) that he gave to his winemaking business, located in Moulin-Neuf, a town near Aude, between Mirepoix and Limoux. A region where vines once abounded, until the major mildew attacks at the beginning of the 20th century. Jean-Louis buys grapes grown organically by other winegrowers, his friends, in whom he has complete confidence. He doesn’t just buy the product, he monitors the fruit set, the ripening, and makes regular visits until August, in order to know the grapes before harvesting them. He vinifies it at home using natural methods, practicing long macerations with whole bunches. A three-week maceration is common for him, as are very gentle pressings in a vertical press. He says he has "a lot of vines in common" with his friend Anthony Tortul (La Sorga, see link). His collection area extends throughout the Languedoc, particularly in the Hérault, around Adissan, Faugères and Saint-Chinian, as well as in the Aude (Limoux) and Tarn (Gaillac), two terroirs that are dear to him. It turns out that the typical Languedoc soils – schist, basalt, pebbles, clay-siliceous – particularly appeal to him for the freshness they give to the wines. "I make wines from the South," he says. "I especially look for terroirs that give freshness, even if the wines have an alcohol content of 14%." » The grape varieties are, of course, typically Languedoc: Grenache, Carignan, Mauzac, Cinsault, Braucol, Duras and Sauvignon. The most powerful reds are made in five terracotta jars, which help him control the extraction and give his wines, he says, "a very crystalline side." The soil, the location, as we understand it, are of the utmost importance to him: once again, the name of his estate Es d'Aqui was not chosen by chance.

Zerlina Rouge 2018,

Domaine de l’Octavin
This Arbois wine showcases the full range of red fruits from Pinot Noir combined with the spicy and undergrowth notes from Trousseau. The palate is straightforward, balanced, and structured. Zerlina, whose name evokes Mozart's operas—a recurring theme for music lover Alice Bouvot—is composed of one-third Pinot Noir and two-thirds Trousseau from the En Curon plot, with gray marl and limestone soil. The harvest is hand-picked, destemmed, and partially pressed before fermentation with indigenous yeasts and aging for ten months on fine lees in oak barrels. Press juice and free-run juice are then mixed to create a clever blend. This wine is made entirely without chemical additives.

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"You don't need anything," says Alice Bouvot, winemaker at Domaine de l'Octavin, "just grapes that are happy in their own skin." Everything is said in favor of natural wine; it's a perfect description. Created in 2005, Domaine d'Alice is located in Arbois, in the wine-growing Jura region, often described as the most organic vineyard in France. The practice of making - among other things - oxidative wines is a good preparation for natural wine, as this type of wine does not allow any chemical additives and especially no sulfites. It's a secret of this magnificent region. Originally spread over two hectares, the estate, managed entirely biodynamically (Demeter) since 2010, has expanded through the gradual acquisition of plots and now covers seven hectares.

An accomplished musician and passionate music lover, Alice intends to apply her musical sensitivity to the wines she makes. She draws a parallel between the technical perfection of conventional wines which risks excluding feeling, while "a musician who does not know music theory and plays with his guts creates emotion." For her, living wine is like this: instinctive, improvised, emotional. Introduced to natural wine by Stéphane Planche, sommelier at chef Jean-Paul Jeunet in Arbois, she will faithfully follow this path. The sometimes whimsical titles of her vintages are inspired sometimes by musical art (Dorabella, Zerline), sometimes by the numerous plots of land that make up her vineyard (En Curon, Les Corvées, En Poussot, etc.), and do not disdain a pun from time to time. Likewise, the labels adorned with happy and salacious little gnomes are a signature of the estate. As for the grape varieties, they are the classics of the Jura - Poulsard, Trousseau, Pinot Noir for the reds, and Chardonnay, Savagnin for the whites. Alongside her Arbois wines, Alice has created a business of "on the vine" grapes (Ecocert certified) with her winegrower friends from the region. Natural, committed, joyful and highly drinkable, the wines of Alice Bouvot are all the more coveted as the vintages, produced in plot-by-plot mode, appear, disappear and reappear depending on the vintage and inspiration.

Commendatore Rouge 2018,

Domaine de l'Octavin
Commendatore is a charming wine, full of red fruits, spices, aromatic herbs, and mineral notes. Savory, long, and persistent, it owes its long maceration to complex aromas supported by high acidity and well-integrated tannins. Made from 100% biodynamically grown trousseau grapes on a gray-limestone marl terroir, it is elegant and intense like the statue of the Commander, but infinitely less threatening. Made without any additives in the vineyard or cellar, it is a perfect companion for red meats and game, but it will also not disdain a veal on the bone long roasted in a casserole.

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"You don't need anything," says Alice Bouvot, winemaker at Domaine de l'Octavin, "just a grape that feels good in its skin." Everything is said in favor of natural wine, it's a perfect description. Created in 2005, Domaine d'Alice is located in Arbois, in this wine-growing Jura often described as the most organic vineyard in France. The habit of making - among other things - oxidative wines is a good preparation for natural wine, this type of wine does not allow any chemical additives and especially no sulfites. It is a secret of this magnificent region. Originally spread over two hectares, the estate, managed entirely biodynamically (Demeter) since 2010, has expanded through the gradual acquisition of plots and now covers seven hectares.
An accomplished musician and passionate music lover, Alice intends to apply her musical sensitivity to the wines she makes. She draws a parallel between the technical perfection of conventional wines, which risks excluding feeling, while "a musician who does not know music theory and plays with his guts creates emotion." For her, living wine is like this: instinctive, improvised, emotional. Introduced to natural wine by Stéphane Planche, sommelier at chef Jean-Paul Jeunet in Arbois, she will faithfully follow this path. The sometimes whimsical titles of her vintages are inspired sometimes by musical art (Dorabella, Zerline), sometimes by the numerous plots of land that make up her vineyard (En Curon, Les Corvées, En Poussot, etc.), and do not disdain a pun from time to time. Likewise, the labels adorned with happy and salacious little gnomes are a signature of the estate. As for the grape varieties, they are the classics of the Jura - Poulsard, Trousseau, Pinot Noir for the reds, and Chardonnay, Savagnin for the whites. Alongside her Arbois wines, Alice has created a business of "on the vine" grapes (Ecocert certified) with her winegrower friends from the region. Natural, committed, joyful and highly drinkable, the wines of Alice Bouvot are all the more coveted as the vintages, produced in plot-by-plot mode, appear, disappear and reappear depending on the vintage and inspiration.

i Vicini Favorita Blanc 2019,

Jean-Yves Peron
Near Lake Annecy, in Chevaline, Jean-Yves Péron combines committed viticulture and merchant winemaking (particularly in Northern Italy), both with a focus on nature. His Mondeuse reds are magnificent, as are his whites made from old local grape varieties—Jacquère, Altesse, Bergeron, and Persan. He lives in Chevaline, but his current vineyard, three hectares of which have been biodynamic since the beginning, is divided between Conflans, near Albertville, and Fréterive, a little further downstream in the Isère Valley. Savoyard wine has long suffered from a somewhat flimsy image, not taken seriously enough. Yet, what treasures are produced by its varied soils and numerous old grape varieties! Jean-Yves Péron embodies the rebirth of this beautiful vineyard.
Initially destined for a career in biochemistry, Jean-Yves quickly fell in love with the vine and trained as an oenologist in Bordeaux. He learned his trade as a winemaker with Thierry Allemand in Cornas, then with Bruno Schueller in Alsace, before spending some time in New Zealand and the United States. His trading business, which he began in 2011, allows him to buy the harvest from organic winemakers near his home and in Italy: for him, it gives a new dimension to his work as a winemaker, allowing him to multiply the terroirs and deepen his experiences in winemaking and aging.
Jean-Yves Péron's winemaking follows the principles of minimal intervention. On narrow and steep surfaces, his mountain vines receive no synthetic products, Jean-Yves preferring horsetail and nettle manure. The surrounding vegetation is extremely rich: it protects the vines and helps strengthen them. The soils are grassed, mown, and reworked with a pickaxe and winch. The harvest is entirely manual. Once vatted in whole bunches, the grapes, both red and white, undergo a semi-carbonic maceration that allows the extraction of fresh fruit aromas. This maceration time varies between five days and nine weeks depending on the vintage. The day before or two days before pressing, Jean-Yves performs foot-treading directly in the vat. After this fermentation, the musts are sent to barrels for aging on lees for twelve months in five hundred liter barrels of two or three wines (to limit the oaky sensation), followed by blending and resting in the vat. No sulfites are added, or as little as possible, and the wines are not fined or filtered.
In 2017, Jean-Yves Péron decided to expand his range by collecting organic grapes in the heart of Piedmont, Italy. The result was several vintages, including this 100% Favorita white, a local variety so close to Vermentino (Rolle in France) that the two grape varieties are considered identical. We therefore have a sort of non-maritime Vermentino, with the signature of a more continental terroir and climate. The wine is the result of a two-week skin maceration. It offers the characteristics of the grape variety: a beautiful acidic base, tension, due to the plot and the terroir. It is tasty, semi-aromatic in the manner of certain Alsatian grape varieties: perfumed without being exotic, with a minerality of young vines grown on a semi-slope, at the top of a small ridge which allows for a nice maturity.

Les Œillets blanc 2019,

Jean-Yves Peron
In Chevaline, Savoie, near Lake Annecy, Jean-Yves Péron skillfully combines committed viticulture and merchant winemaking, both with a focus on nature. His Mondeuse reds are magnificent, as are his whites made from ancient local grape varieties—Jacquère, Altesse, Bergeron, and Persan.
Initially destined for a career in biochemistry, he quickly fell in love with the vine and trained as an oenologist in Bordeaux. His current vineyard, three hectares biodynamic since the beginning, is divided between Conflans, near Albertville, and Fréterive, a little further downstream in the Isère Valley. He learned his trade as a winemaker with Thierry Allemand in Cornas, then with Bruno Schueller in Alsace, before spending some time in New Zealand and the United States. His trading business, which he began in 2011, allows him to buy the harvest from organic winemakers close to home, but also in Northern Italy: for him, it is a new dimension given to his work as a winemaker, allowing him to multiply the terroirs and to deepen his experiences in winemaking and aging.
On narrow and steep surfaces, his mountain vines receive no synthetic products, Jean-Yves preferring horsetail and nettle manure. The surrounding vegetation is very rich: it protects the vines and helps to strengthen them. The soils are grassed, mown and reworked with a pickaxe and winch. The harvest is entirely manual. Jean-Yves Péron's winemaking adheres to the principles of minimal intervention. On narrow, steep slopes, his mountain vines are not treated with any synthetic products, Jean-Yves preferring horsetail and nettle manure. The surrounding vegetation is extremely rich: it protects the vines and helps strengthen them. The soils are grassed, mown, and reworked with a pickaxe and winch. The harvest is entirely manual. Once vatted in whole bunches, the grapes, both red and white, undergo a semi-carbonic maceration process that extracts fresh fruit aromas. This maceration time varies between five days and nine weeks depending on the vintage. The day before or two days before pressing, Jean-Yves performs foot-treading directly in the vat. After this fermentation, the musts are sent to barrels for aging on lees for twelve months in five hundred liter barrels of two or three wines (to limit the oaky sensation), followed by blending and resting in vats. No sulfites are added, or as little as possible, and the wines are not fined or filtered. Savoyard wine has long suffered from a somewhat flimsy image, not taken seriously enough. Yet, what treasures its varied soils and numerous ancient grape varieties produce! Jean-Yves Péron embodies the rebirth of this beautiful vineyard. This 100% Jacquère white, grown on limestone soil, results from two weeks of skin maceration followed by a year of barrel aging. For this cuvée, Jean-Yves waits for a more advanced phenolic maturity of the grapes in order to obtain a greater tannic concentration. Superbly structured, it offers chewiness and texture. The tension is strong, balanced by a hint of apricot. Woody, with explosive minerality and beautiful tension, this is a very atypical maceration white.

Magnum Munjebel Blanc 2019,

Frank Cornelissen
A key figure in natural wine, a universally respected figure in this category of wines, Frank Cornelissen is a classic. This man of constant questioning lives in human and cosmic resonance with his contrasting terroir: he has demonstrated that the powerful minerality of a great volcanic soil can be enhanced by the naturalness of his wines. The brilliance, integrity, and exquisite fruitiness of his vintages earn him the admiration even of those reluctant to accept "natural." They are good introductory wines.
His Sicilian azienda is located in Passopisciaro, in the northern Etna Valley. It is, he says, the "Night Coast" of Etna for the great diversity of its wines spread over many locations (contrade) at different altitudes. The climate is continental and harsh, even snowy, in winter, but very warm and sunny from June to September. The altitude gives the wines tension and elegance. The vines coexist with a Mediterranean polyculture: olive trees, almond trees, vegetable gardens... (Frank also produces olive oil). The age of the vines ranges from forty years to over one hundred years. The plots, nineteen in number, on twenty-four hectares in total, are all at altitude, between 600 and 900 meters, on several volcanic flows. They are all vinified separately: Frank decides on the blend based on the quality of the wines from each plot. In general, seven or eight vintages are made in addition to the generic wines (rosé, basic red and white). The soils are made up of different types of basalt, between powder and rock, with perfect drainage that allows for concentrated and fine wines.
Nerello Mascalese dominates the estate's grape varieties. This great traditional red grape variety from the northern valley of Etna is the only grape variety used in the great vintages. Its growing cycle is long, which allows the vine to work the soil and capture its minerality in the fruit. Other grape varieties include: Nerello Capuccio, Minella Bianco, Minella Nera, Alicante Bouschet, Malvasia, Cattaratto, Moscadella, Grecanico Dorato, Carricante...
Produced on mid-altitude plots from Grecanico Dorato and Carricante in equal parts, on the Calderara, Borriglione, Crasà and Picciolo plots, this white is very ripe. It combines beautiful concentration, freshness, and oriental aromas: orange blossom, jasmine, dried apricot. The vines are over forty years old; the grapes are destemmed, lightly crushed, and macerated for about four days. No fining, no sulfiting, and light filtration before bottling. This wine pairs well with an almost infinite variety of dishes, meat and fish, oysters and shellfish, and all Asian cuisines.

Cyprès de Toi Blanc 2020,

Fond Cyprès
This Languedoc estate is built on solid foundations: its two winemakers, Rodolphe and Laetitia, are also descendants of winemakers. Even before planting their first vine, they already had a clear objective: "to produce southern wines that reflect our style, wines with character, rooted in our soils, with freshness and refined tannins." They want to create entirely natural wines, concentrated terroir. In the heart of the ancient Corbières massif, they are taking over an old estate already planted with abandoned Carignan and Grenache grapes, which have seen neither fertilizer nor pesticides for years: these clean, vibrant soils are ideal conditions for launching into natural winemaking. Around this historic heart, they first planted Grenache Noir and Syrah, then a plot of white grape varieties: Viognier, Grenache Blanc, Roussanne. The estate has been Ecocert certified since 2010 and also complies with the Nature & Progrès charter. The vinification is done without the addition of sulfites or exogenous yeasts. "We make wines for pleasure," say Laetitia and Rodolphe. For them, natural wine is first assessed by taste, from the harvest. The vintages closely follow the plots, the musts are fruity, fluid, and complex. The wines of Fond Cyprès poetically evoke the estate's ecosystem and the vegetation that protects the plots: the pine forests, the shady springs, the beauty of the natural environment that brings freshness to the wines and leaves the soil's signature. Deliciously balanced between mineral imprint, vegetal environment and fruit expression, the wines of Fond Cyprès reflect the South: the caress of its sun, but also the freshness of its shadows.
This all-Grenache shaped by the limestone and blue marl soils of Escales, vinified and aged in stainless steel vats, is a seducer, dazzlingly fresh and delicious enough to evoke the most diverse culinary pairings. Wonderfully balanced, taut and yet affable, it first overturns on the table a basket of white fruits - ripe and crisp nashi pear, cottage garden pear - which quickly give way to exotic notes on the mid-palate: a fine touch of mango and apricot. In the background, wild thyme, thyme, garrigue, a breath of fig leaf and fresh lemon. A broad and generous palette that lends itself to all moments.
Natural wine with no added sulfites.

Skin Contact Zizifredo Blanc 2019,

Frédéric Cossard
Through his entirely natural work, Frédéric Cossard gives voice to the terroirs and Burgundy wines, undistorted by agricultural chemicals. Having observed, during his years of trading, the existence of harmful viticultural practices, the winemaker used this counterexample to practice unadulterated viticulture. Thus, he produces vintages of purity and elegance without artifice that are among the most sought-after in Burgundy. Frédéric worked for some time as a wine broker before creating the Chassorney estate with his partner Laure in 1996: initially a few ares of vines in Saint-Romain, Auxey-Duresses and Savigny-lès-Beaune, and currently ten hectares spread across the Nuits-Saint-Georges, Pommard, Volnay, Bourgogne-Hautes-Côtes-de-Beaune and Bourgogne appellations. In 2006, he created his own wine trading house and buys organic grapes to vinify, according to his style and convictions, great vintages such as Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet, Chassagne-Montrachet, Pommard, Nuits-Saint-Georges, Chambolle-Musigny, Vosne-Romanée and several Beaujolais crus. The exercise is not limited to Burgundy, as vintages are made from grapes purchased in the Jura or Languedoc. At his place, the work of the soil and the vines is done as naturally as possible: regular plowing by horse, no addition of chemical fertilizers or weedkillers. The vines are cared for according to the principles of biodynamics: homeopathic treatments based on essential oils, copper and sulfur in minimal doses. The harvest is entirely manual, carried out at full maturity, at the end of October. Red or white, classic Burgundies or more atypical or less "regional" bottles, Frédéric's vintages are rare and sought-after wines, which sometimes require waiting.
This blend of Grenache Gris, Bourboulenc and Muscat of Alexandria macerates on the skins before being put into barrels. It expresses notes of tropical fruits (pineapple) and various citrus fruits: mandarin, grapefruit, orange. Rare, appetizing and sophisticated.
Natural wine with no added sulfites.

Pinot Noir Rouge 2019,

Frédéric Cossard
Through his entirely natural work, Frédéric Cossard gives voice to the terroirs and Burgundy wines, undistorted by agricultural chemicals. Having observed, during his years of trading, the existence of harmful viticultural practices, the winemaker used this counterexample to practice unadulterated viticulture. Thus, he produces vintages of unadulterated purity and elegance that are among the most sought-after in Burgundy. Frédéric worked for some time as a wine broker before creating the Chassorney estate with his partner Laure in 1996: initially a few ares of vines in Saint-Romain, Auxey-Duresses and Savigny-lès-Beaune, and currently ten hectares spread across the Nuits-Saint-Georges, Pommard, Volnay, Bourgogne-Hautes-Côtes-de-Beaune and Bourgogne appellations. In 2006, he created his own wine trading house and buys organic grapes to vinify, according to his style and convictions, great vintages such as Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet, Chassagne-Montrachet, Pommard, Nuits-Saint-Georges, Chambolle-Musigny, Vosne-Romanée and several Beaujolais crus. The exercise is not limited to Burgundy, as vintages are made from grapes purchased in the Jura or Languedoc regions. At his place, the work of the soil and the vines is done as naturally as possible: regular plowing by horse, no addition of chemical fertilizers or weedkillers. The vines are cared for according to the principles of biodynamics: homeopathic treatments based on essential oils, copper, and sulfur in minimal doses. The harvest is entirely manual, carried out at full maturity, at the end of October. Red or white, classic Burgundies or more atypical or less "regional" bottles, Frédéric's vintages are rare and sought-after wines, which sometimes require waiting.
Simply named, it is in some ways Frédéric Cossard's entry-level wine, but what an entry-level wine! Crisp, dense, lively, fresh, fruity, this wine has benefited from all the expertise of the Burgundian master.
Natural wine without added sulfites.