FRENCH WINE

Gewurztraminer is skin-macerated

Savagnin is vinified sous-voile and aged in 250-L oak barrels for 7 years

100% Savagnin from 40 year old vines grown on blue marl/clay/limestone soil. Aged in large wooden vats for 18 months. Ouillé. This cuvée shares a name with J-F's winemaking sidekick, the family Weimaraner. Unlike the dog, this is redolent of yellow plums, sea salt, honey, and white pepper.

Ganevat is one of the Jura's star producers The winemaking is pretty natural, and no sulfur dioxide has been used during vinification since 2006, with just small additions to Florine and Les Billats at bottling. The whites spend a long time on lees and are aged for extended periods in barrel and amphora. Typically, more than 30 cuvées are released each vintage. Based in the hamlet of La Combe, Jean-François is making some incredible Jura wines from recently-certified (Demeter) biodynamic vineyards. In 1998 he returned to the family domaine after a period spent working in Burgundy, with Jean-Marc Morey. These wines are naturally made, with the reds receiving no sulfur dioxide additions, and the whites only a tiny amount. These are true terroir wines, and they are thrilling – especially the remarkable Savagnin.

A blend of two vintages 2016 Chardonnay, aged 2 years in barrel 2017 Aligoté, aged 1 year in barrel

BIODYNAMIC - NATURAL WINE

Aged 9 months in conical wood tank

Jean-François creates a stunning number of cuvées, ranging between thirty-five and forty every year! His methodology goes far beyond the details of the average vigneron. For some, his process would be maddening, as each cuvée calls for a highly individualized élévage. Jean-François is committed to minute doses of sulfur, so low in fact, that many fear it hurting the wines during transport. He curbs this issue entirely by aging many of his whites on the lees for extended periods of time, anywhere from two to eleven years! In all of his years making wine, he has never had a problem. In the Jura, many of the wines go through a traditional, intentional oxidation; however Jean-François aims to lend a greater lightness and elegance to wines of this style than are typical. He gravitates toward the Burgundian style, using ouillage to top off barrels. Jean-François Ganevat is a master of his craft, one of the true magicians of the eclectic. To say that his grapes are spun into gold would not be far from the truth; they are entirely otherworldly.

A blend of multiple vintages: 2015, 2016, 2017
Partly aged in barrel, partly macerated, partly sous-voile

As Ganevat considers his viticulture by far the most important aspect of his work, he keeps his vinification and aging simple, but with no less an attention to detail. His fermentations are long, with indigenous yeasts in old demi-muids. Aging is for two or more years in the same casks for his Chardonnay and native Savagnin whites, with little or no sulfur added. As for the reds, from Pinot Noir and the indigenous Trousseau and Poulsard, Jean-François destems completely, then ferments the whole berries à l’ancienne—utilizing carbonic maceration as in Beaujolais—and then aging in neutral barrels. And unlike many others in the Jura, he keeps the barrels for most of his white cuvées carefully topped up to avoid oxidation, as he believes that gives the purest expression of his numerous terroirs. To fully express each terroir, Jean-François has planted 45 different ancient indigenous grapes among the appellation-approved varieties. And he uses eight people including himself—one person per hectare—to ensure that the labor-intensive biodynamic farming of each site is done perfectly.

Domaine Berthet-Bondet is located in the subregion of Château-Chalon, the heartland of the Jura. The 2016 Trio was made of three grape varieties, 50% Trousseau, 30% Poulsard, and 20% Pinot Noir, all organically farmed and hand harvested. Berries were sorted, destemmed, and underwent a short maceration to extract desired flavors, color, and tannins. Fermentation and maturation were conducted in stainless steel tanks. Primary aromas and flavors included strawberry, red cherry, tomato leaf, tea, tarragon, juniper, and rhubarb. Tertiary notes included dusty trail and cherry compote.

Jean Bourdy is one of the oldest family owned producers in Jura. No modern equipments whatsoever are used when producing these rustic yet refined wines, including the regional classics such as Vin Jeaune.
Poulsard, Trousseau and Pinot Noir compose the holy trinity in this light-bodied, refined and traditionally crafted red Jura wine, reminiscent of very few others.

We bet most of you have never tasted Chardonnay like this! While crystal clear in its expression, this classically built-up Jura white proves to the open-minded taster that grapes are of secondary importance in the production of great wines. This is the essence of the Bourdy family’s Terroir, and while sipping this truly individual wine, it will literally take you to where it was born and raised.

Founded in 1475, the current Bourdys represent the 15th generation cultivating land in Arlay, which today is the epicenter of Jura's revival as a wine producing region. They represent a style of wine which is since long lost in our hurrying state of mind, where immediate pleasure rule our buying decisions. The Bourdy family couldn't care less, and we adore them for this unique approach to the wine world.

Aged 13 years sous voile in oak barrels

For such a fervent perfectionist and insatiable lover of details as Jean-François, the decision to have the domaine certified as biodynamic was a natural choice. Jean-François creates a stunning number of cuvées, ranging between thirty-five and forty every year! His methodology goes far beyond the details of the average vigneron. Savagnin or Savagnin blanc is a variety of white wine grape with green-skinned berries. It is mostly grown in the Jura region of France, where it is made into Savagnin wine or the famous ... The story starts with the ancient Traminer variety, a green-skinned grape ... The Gringet of Savoie has no link with Savagnin blanc.

SAVIGNIN

WINE SPECTATOR 92 POINTS - "Delivers a bright and engaging range of Jonagold apple, melon and pear flavors, with a light hazelnut echo through the finish. Fresh acidity stays well-embedded throughout. Drink now through 2020."

Jura is located to the east of the Côte d’Or, and this area is dominated by the forested Jura Mountains and provides a geographical measure of detachment that allowed certain traditional wine styles and grapes to persist in the region. A classic Jura boasting citrus and nut character( Hint of a sherry character). A Slightly oily texture and a fresh finish, it is mouthfilling, complex and satisfying.

“Fully ripe grapes, brilliantly judged use of wood, and delicate use, too, of controlled oxidation to create what Guy calls “une petite inflection noisette” (“a little hazelnut nose”) are all hallmarks of the domaine’s wines, the consistency of which is impressive for such a cool-climate vineyard region.” -Andrew Jefford, The New France

Jacques Puffeney’s father was a vineyard worker who owned a mere speck of land in the village of Montigny Les Arsures (just around the corner from Arbois). Jacques made his first wine at the age of 17 but, to earn a living, he worked simultaneously as a “saleur de Comté” helping to make the fabled cheese of his region. Over time the Puffeney family acquired vineyards in Montigny and the surrounding villages and now the domaine encompasses 7.5 hectares, all in the appellation of Arbois. Jacques Puffeney’s prowess in both the vineyards and the cave has been recognized throughout France and has earned him the nickname among his colleagues of “the Pope of Arbois.
The white wines are treated in the most traditional fashion of the Jura, left to age in barrel (foudres and barriques) for extended periods without topping up so as to encourage the development of the oxidative characteristics that define the best of the classic Jura wines. Jacques Puffeney does not fine or filter any of his wines.

Chateau Chalon is one of the legendary appellations of the Jura. Driving in off the Saone plain and through old industrial towns the land takes a sharp jump in elevation and a scenic view of limestone cliffs that the village of Chateau Chalon rests on. There are many ancient towns in France with almost unbearable charm and Château Chalon is in position for the number one position.

While the wines labeled as Châton Chalon are one of the many great triumphs of French wine antiquity, the wines are rare and make up a very small portion of what Jean-Claude Credoz’s production.

Jean-Claude Credoz is one lucky man. Not only because he lives in such an absurdly beautiful place but because he is one of the largest landowners on the infamous appellation of Château Chalon, with almost five hectares of vines.The domaine flirts with organic and biodynamic methods but have not committed to restraints they bring; Jean-Claude prefers to be flexible when he needs to be, especially concerning the use of copper and sulfur sprays in the vineyards. Vin de Paille is the French for "straw wine", made only in the ripest vintages. Straw wine, or raisin wine, is a wine made from grapes that have been dried to concentrate their juice. The classic method dries clusters of grapes on mats of straw in the sun, but some regions dry them under cover, on roofs, or on modern racks, while some hang up the grapes or leave them to dry on the vine.

Full body, Rustic, Spicy, Sweet

Light in body yet intensely perfumed, the rare Poulsard grape here gives a supple-textured wine full of red berry fruit alongside some earthy-animal complexity.

"Redcurrant and cherry, with a hint of hibiscus on the nose. Light and precise, with cherry complemented by floral and spice flavors. A delightful and lively Poulsard." - Skurnik Imports

Domaine Rolet, founded in the early 1940s, is Jura's largest family-owned estate. The second generation-four siblings-now run the show: Bernard and Guy look after the sixty hectares of vines as well as the winemaking, while Pierre and Eliane handle the commercial side. The vines are 50+ years old, the yields low, and the vinification meticulous, leading to brilliant, precise expressions of Jura's distinctive wine styles. Vineyard The grapes were harvested by hand from vines aged thirty-five to forty-five, planted on red marl soils in the communes of Montigny and Arbois. The grapes were sorted and crushed, then fermented with indigenous yeast for around three weeks in stainless steel tanks. The wine was then aged in large, used casks ("foudre") for fifteen months.

Savagnin Domaine Jean-Louis Tissot 2015 Savagnin are permitted to age without being topped up, giving rise to this slightly oxidative style of white wine for which the region is famous.

Tissot is from an old Jura family (there are enough Tissots in the Jura to keep a genealogist busy for years) and has turned his family’s property into both one of the region’s most dynamic presences—biodynamics, amphorae, all the usual shiny things—as well as one of its bigger landholders, with more than 50 hectares.

Poulsard is a red-skinned French grape variety that is a specialty of Arbois in northern Jura. Thin skins and pale coloring are the most obvious traits of Poulsard, while delicate perfumes are a lesser-known quality.