Description
Exceptional cuvée, pure and of great intensity, all the splendor of the Roussanne in Brézème. 2019 is the first vintage, the aging potential seems immense. Direct vertical pressing. Natural cold settling. Fermented by indigenous yeasts. Vinified and aged for 12 months in sandstone vessels. No added sulfur. Hand bottling.
Eric is a trailblazer, putting all the but extinct regions of Brézème and Saint Julien en Saint Alban on the map. He experiments with concepts you rarely if ever hear about elsewhere: finding acidity in Marsanne through anforas, not working the soil in favor of cover crops, “infusion” macerations, working on his own grafts, rediscovering forgotten grapes adaptable to the very real threat of climate change…
Like all good winemakers, Eric strongly believes that wines are made in the vineyard, and that his work, after the harvest, consists in following the lead of the vintage and accompanying the wines so they fulfill their potential. Exact steps in vinification vary according to the varietals, terroirs and vintages, but the goal is always to provide the grapes, musts and wines with the best environment and to intervene as little as possible.
His techniques for white wines include sorting in the vines and at the winery, whole clusters pressed in a vertical press (that’s the old fashioned wood kind), no added yeasts, barrel, concrete and ceramic fermentation (no new wood), aging on fine lees, malolactic fermentation for all the wines, minimal use of SO2 at bottling only, no pump-overs, fining and filtration only when absolutely necessary.
