Category Archives: Wine Makers

PASO ROBLES WINE COUNTRY

Paso Robles is located at, approximately halfway between the cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco. Paso Robles is where the region of Southern California ends. The elevation of Paso Robles ranges from 675 to 1,100 feet (340 m), but the majority of the main downtown area of the city sits at about 740 feet (230 m) above sea level.

The topography of the area consists of gentle rolling hills on the eastern half of the city, and foothill peaks which rise in elevation to the Santa Lucia Coastal Range on the west, which are all blanketed in the Californian chaparral environment, which is mainly dry grassland and oak woodland. Simply “Paso,” as it is referred to by locals, sits on the eastern foothills of the Santa Lucia Coastal Mountain Range, which lies directly to the West of the city, and runs in a North-South direction, starting at Monterey, then runs down South to its terminus, in the San Luis Obispo area. The city is located at the southern end of the fertile Salinas River Valley.  Paso Robles sits at the border where northern San Luis Obispo County and southern Monterey County meet, and is situated roughly 24 miles (39 km), or 20 minutes, inland from the Pacific Ocean.

For a time, Paso Robles was known as the “Almond City” because the local almond growers created the largest concentration of almond orchards in the world.

Paso Robles’ wine industry has a long history within the area. Wine grapes were introduced to the Paso Robles soil in 1797 by the Spanish conquistadors and Franciscan missionaries. Spanish explorer Francisco Cortez envisioned an abundant wine-producing operation and encouraged settlers from Mexico and other parts of California to cultivate the land. The first vineyardists in the area were the Padres of the Mission San Miguel, and their old fermentation vats and grapevine artwork can still be seen at the Mission, north of the city of Paso Robles.

Commercial winemaking was introduced to the Paso Robles region in 1882 when Andrew York, a settler from Indiana, began planting vineyards and established the Ascension Winery at what is now York Mountain Winery.

Following Andrew York’s early success in the wine business, Gerd and Ilsabe Klintworth planted a vineyard in the Geneseo/Linne area in approximately 1886. They were licensed to sell jugs of Zinfandel, Port, and Muscatel, as well as some of the area’s first white wine made from Burger grapes. The Casteel Vineyards in the Willow Creek area were planted just prior to 1908. Casteel wines were stored and aged in a cave cellar. Cuttings from the old vines provided the start for other vineyards, still producing in the area today.

As the popularity of wines began to grow, so did the Paso Robles wine region.  The Templeton Winery was the area’s first to be bonded following the repeal of Prohibition.

The Paso Robles wine region gained more notoriety when Ignace Paderewski, the famous Polish statesman and concert pianist, visited Paso Robles, became enchanted with the area, and purchased 2,000 acres In the early 1920s, he planted Petite Sirah and Zinfandel on his Rancho San Ignacio vineyard in the Adelaide area. Following Prohibition, Paderewski’s wine was made at York Mountain Winery. The wines produced from grapes grown on Rancho San Ignacio went on to become award-winners.  Paso Robles’ reputation as a premier wine region became firmly established as a result of this and later successes.

RIESLING, THE BEST WHITE WINE IN THE WORLD

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Mosel is the oldest and arguably the best known of 13 wine regions in Germany. It takes it’s name from the picturesque Mosel River.  Prior to the 2007 vintage, the region was listed as Mosel-Saar-Ruwer; the name was eventually shortened to be more “consumer-friendly.” Mosel is Germany‘s third largest wine region in terms of production.  The region stretches the length of the twisting Mosel River and along it’s two tributaries, the Saar and the Ruwer.  The Mosel Valley is well known for it’s steep, terraced hillsides abutting the river banks. In fact, the steepest recorded vineyard in the world is the Mosel’s Calmont vineyard belonging to the village of Bremm.  The Mosel Wine Region is where magic happens because of it’s soil, topography, and climate, producing in my opinion The World’s Greatest White Wine.  “RIESLING”

Riesling is the most versatile of the white grape varieties and no other grape gives you more of a sense of Terrior.  Riesling can either be produced bone dry or sultry sweet and this why Reisling is called the great noble grape in Germany.  Riesling is sexy and interesting while Chardonnay can be down right boring.

To emphasize the specific soil differences that exist within the Mosel, the Blue Slate of the Fahrlay plot produces a Riesling with a particularly intensive mineral flavor and slightly salty note in the finish. Whereas, the Grey Slate produces a Riesling for Grobes Gewachs Marienburg (GG) that is creamy, yellow peach, mango aroma. The harmoniously integrated acidity gives the wine an invigorating freshness with a powerful finish.

The only other white grape that one could compare to the greatness of Riesling is Chardonnay grown in Burgundy France. This is not only where the best Chardonnay is made but it’s also the most expensive white juice on earth. Chardonnay is grown all over the world, whereas Riesling prefers a particular soil to show her greatness and the Mosel Region in Germany is perfect.

The families below have pioneered and contributed to produce the best Reisling in the world:

The Prum family story dates back to 1156 when they owned vineyards throughout the mid-Mosel, including parcels in the towns of Bernkastel, Graach, Wehlen and Zeltingen. Current owner Raimund Prum, aka “The Red Prum,” took over the reins in 1971, following the unforeseen passing of his young father.

The Clemens Busch family is one of the top producers of Dry Organic Riesling in Germany. The estate is located in the village of Pünderich (near Bernkastel) far down stream in the Mosel wine-growing region. The family lives in a restored 1663 timber-framed house that sits directly on the banks of the Mosel River facing some of the steepest vineyards in the Mosel.

St Urbans-Hof winery was founded in 1947 by Nicolaus Weis who held a strong conviction that the fragile unity of viticulture and nature must be recognized and respected. In 1997 Nicolaus’ grandson Nik(olaus) joined the winery to work alongside his father Hermann who had overseen operations since the 1960s.  Today St. Urbans-Hof is the second largest family-owned winery in the Mosel

Anne Parent

Anne Parent

 

Anne Parent

Anne Parent

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On a warm Thursday evening in Pompano Beach Florida 8 wine enthusiast sat down to enjoy a lovely French dinner of Coq Au Vin and Roasted Pork, but the food was not going to be the star of this dinner we had on display 9 bottles of Anne Parent Pommard wines from 2010 and 2013. The wines were provided by Andrew Lampasone from www.winewatch.com

Domaine Parent, www.domaine-parent-bourgogne.com, owned by sisters Anne and Catherine, is located in Pommard. Anne, fluent in English, travels the world promoting Domaine Parent wines and advocating for women winemakers. Anne and Catherine represent the twelfth generation of family winemaking in Burgundy. The family has been producing wine since 1635, and after 11 generations of male wine makers, the Parent sisters are in control of the Domaine and have been since1998. Legend has it that Thomas Jefferson while serving as ambassador to France was a huge fan of their wines and a personal friend to Etienne Parent.

Anne and Catherine divide the responsibility of running the winery; Anne handles the wine making and Catherine handles the business of running the Domaine. Domaine Parent makes wine according to Burgundian classifications: Bourgogne, Village, Premier Cru, and Grand Cru. Anne’s personal philosophy on wine making is “There are no bad vintages, there are only bad winemakers”, she made this statement in reference to the extremely challenging 2012 vintage. Anne is also a big believer in organic and biodynamic farming and is moving her Domaine in that direction. Anne has had a passion for wine making from a very young age, but growing up with brothers, a father will choose males in the family to carry on the wine making tradition. In general women are left to explore other avenues to fulfill their passions. Anne went to university to study law then later returned to study wine making.

Once her brother left to start his own Domaine, Anne and her Catherine took control of Domaine Parent. Anne believes it is clearly more challenging for women coming up in the wine industry by having to prove themselves three times more than there male winemaker counterparts to obtain the respect they desire. An overall view of the wines from Pommard will find that they tend to be more masculine as well as elegant in style, this is also true of Anne’s wines.

The common theme I found with Anne Parent’s wines are Clarity, sharp Acidity with harmony and complexity. They are a joy to drink.

2010 Pommard – Expressive nose of juicy red raspberries, black pepper, baking spices and leaves. The wine is medium bodied with integrated and persistent soft tannin. Solid acidity and a moderate finish brought this wine together nicely. Between the slight earthy note and structure, this is a beautiful expression of Pommard.

2010 Beaune Epinottes 1er Cru – Nuance, finesse and pretty. This wine exudes the delicate and complex nature of Beaune. Fresh red cheries, raspberries, dried roses, and some black olives. Medium body with bright acidty and medium minus tannin. This is a wine of great finesse with a lengthy finish. While this is a lighter body wine, it should age well due to it’s acid backbone and harmonious balance.

2010 Pommard Chanlins 1er Cru – This wine needs time, it’s somewhat closed at the moment but hits all the right notes. The nose is complex; Cherry cola, black cherries, raspberries, white pepper and orange marmalade. Palate is fleshy, medium chalky tannin, solid acid backbone and long finish. The wine is terrific, needs time in the glass or years in the bottle to show its full potential.

2013 Pommard Chanlins 1er Cru – expressive and complex nose. Fresh raspberries, baking spices, cocoa nibs, fresh herbs. This wine is medium body, medium drying tannins and elevated acid. Terrific texture and persistent long Finish. This is gorgeous wine. It’s vibrant, fresh, concentrated and structured.

2010 Champoniers 1er Cru – Fruit and complexity! Raspberry, cherry, baking spices, nutmeg and a host of nuance. Medium body with moderate amount of gripping tanning and a firm acid backbone. Combined with the long finish this is a wine that will age gracefully well over 10 years.

2013 Champoniers 1er Cru – Bright and uplifting aroma of raspberries, wild strawberry, fresh roses and a spices. The palate is well balanced with upfront chalky tannins, firm acid and a long finish. This is a wine with gorgeous freshness and will age very well. Outstanding!

2010 Argillieres 1er Cru – Strong intensity on nose with very ripe red fruit; raspberries, black cherries, plums along with savory mushrooms and herbs. This wine has pronounced ripe tannins, medium acid, a long finish and very well balanced. The flavors are consistent with the nose. This wine should develop nicely over the next decade.

2013 Argillieres 1er Cru – Alluring and intense nose; Fresh red cherries, wild strawberry, assortment of spices (cinnamon, white pepper), fresh herbs and brown sugar. The wine has a delicate but firm texture; forward tannins, bright acidity and a long finish. The  This wine exemplifies finesse, I look forward to enjoying this for many years. Outstanding!

2013 Corton Les Renards Grand Cru – Intense wine with remarkable concentration. Blackberry, plum, cured meat, mushroom and herbs fill the glass. The wine is medium bodied. Chalky tannins give the wine density, for a wine this tightly wound, it has a velvety texture and a long, lingering finish. Even though oak is obvious, it’s well integrated and will become harmonious with age. An excellent bottle that demands patience to reach its full potential.

Thaddeus Buggs <minoritywinereport@gmail.com , Also contributing Matt Perrella.

ST URBANS-HOF WINERY

I had the pleasure of having a great lunch in Fort Lauderdale Florida with Nik Weis the third generation of ST Urbans-Hof Winery in Germany. The Winery was founded in 1947 by Nik’s grandfather Nicholas Weis, who had a strong conviction that the fragile unity of  viticulture and nature must be recognized and respected.

I taste it through the families portfolios of the great noble grape Riesling. They range in price and styles from being very affordable to world-class wine. You could tell that there was a very special quality about these wines where they reflected truly from the soil in which they came from.

These wines are bursting with ripe acidity, minerality which makes pairing with seafood, Thai food, and other spicy dishes a  perfect choice.

Theminoritywinereport.com

WOMEN OF BURGUNDY

Burgundy is a most storied wine region, its wine among the most expensive and highly valued in the world. The wines hailing from Burgundy are thought to be the pinnacle of viticulture, yet here are some who think that the wines and region are no longer interesting and a bit staid. Something many do not know is that many new exciting things are coming out of Burgundy—one of them is the proliferation of outstanding female winemakers. Women are adding fresh perspectives to the old boys’ network of winemakers, and are reviving Burgundy with feminine creativity.

1) Domaine Manoir du Capucin, www.manoirducapucin@yahoo.fr, has been a family run winery for many generations beginning with Chloe Bayon’s (MdC vintner) great-grand father who fell in love with Fuisse and helped to establish the AOC Fuisse in 1936. Chloé grew up in Nice with a passion for wine, which led her to study winemaking. In Nice, she found it difficult to be accepted because of her gender. Worked hard to prove her capabilities, then moved to Fussié 10 years ago to helm Manoir DU Capucin. Chloé manages the day-to-day operations of the 13 hectare winery along with two others, all while expecting her second child. Chloé’s goal in returning to Fussié was to restore the winery to the status of her great grandfather’s rich tradition of making great wines.

2) Domaine Feuillat-Juillot, www.domaine@feuillat-juillot.com, is owned by Francoise Feuillat-Juillot. Françoise has been making wine since 1989 with her father Nickel Juillot. Francoise’s passion for winemaking stems from a rich family tradition of winemaking. Getting to where she is now has been no easy feat. In Burgundy, if there are two children, female and male in a winemaking family, the boy is trained to become successor without regard to any winemaking talent the girl in the family may happen to display. That didn’t deter Francoise, her solution was to begin her own domaine. In 2004 she became owner and winemaker at Domaine Feuillat-Juillot where she manages 14 hectares with two other employees. She produces about 60,000 bottles yearly, 13 Premier Crus, and distributes is the USA.

3) Domaine Parent, www.domaine-parent-bourgogne.com, owned by sisters Anne and Catherine, is located in Pommard. Anne, fluent in English, travels the world promoting Domaine Parent wines and advocating for women winemakers. Anne and Catherine represent the twelfth generation of family winemaking in Burgundy. The family has been producing wine since 1635, and after 11 generations of male wine makers, the Parent sisters are in control of the domaine and have been since1998. Legend has it that Thomas Jefferson while serving as ambassador to France was a huge fan of their wines and a personal friend to Etienne Parent.

Anne and Catherine divide the responsibility of running the winery; Anne handles the wine making and Catherine handles the business of running the Domaine. Domaine Parent makes wine according to Burgundian classifications: Bourgogne, Village, Premier Cru, and Grand Cru. Anne’s personal philosophy on wine making is “There are no bad vintages, there are only bad winemakers”, she made this statement in reference to the extremely challenging 2012 vintage. Anne is also a big believer in organic and biodynamic farming and is moving her Domaine in that direction. Anne has had a passion for wine making from a very young age, but growing up with brothers, a father will choose males in the family to carry on the wine making tradition. In general women are left to explore other avenues to fulfill their passions. Anne went to university to study law then later returned to study wine making.

Once her brother left to start his own Domaine, Anne and her Catherine took control of Domaine Parent. Anne believes it is clearly more challenging for women coming up in the wine industry by having to prove themselves three times more than there male winemaker counterparts to obtain the respect they desire. An overall view of the wines from Pommard will find that they tend to be more masculine as well as elegant in style, this is also true of Anne’s wine. Her red wines from the Bourgogne and Village levels have dark cherry fruit with a peppery finish. The Premier Crus are rounder in style but still have a dark cherry acidity and a lingering peppery finish. Anne has created two amazing Grand Crus, upon tasting them the Burgundian classification system is fully realized. The 2008 Corton Grand Cru Les Renardes which was aged 16 months new french oak, has a deep garnet color, black cherry notes, round with depth on the palate. The finish is long with some spice, and you can sense that the oak is there but it doesn’t define this great wine.

4) Domaine Chateau de Chassagne Montrachet, www.francine-picard@m-p.fr, owner is Francine Picard. Founded in 1951 by her father Louis Felix Picard, owner of two hectares of vineyards in the town of Chagny. His children took over the winery in 1990 and they now have 13.5 hectares of land. Francine is also a true believer in the environment, and is steering her winery to become organic and biodynamic. Francine is the business mind behind Chateau de Chassagne Montrachet and incorporates a three-part business philosophy for running a winery: Organic Wine Making, Economics & Business, and the social aspects of managing a winery. Since 2006 she has directed and created a strong teamwork environment for her crew of approximately 30 employees

5) Domaine Dubreuil-Fontaine, winemaker and owner Christine Dubreuil- Fontaine, Domaine@dubreuil-fontaine.com. Located in the Côte de Beaune Domaine. Dubreuil started as a family winery in 1879. They have over 20 hectares , its vineyards cover the villages of: Pernand-Vergelesses, Aloxe-Corton, Savigny Les Beaune, Pommard, Beaune, and Volnay. She makes wine on variety of levels, Bourgogne, Village, Premier Cru, to Grand Cru. Christine has been in charge of the winemaking and the business of the Domaine for the past 20 years, she works closely with her husband and 10 employees. Christine is fulltime business woman and a loving mother of two children ages 13 and 17. Christine attended wine school in Beaune and then business school in Paris. In addition she lived in the US for several months working at Simi Winery in California and a local wine store in LA. Ms. Dubreuil- Fontaine is a fabulous wine maker who takes a balanced approach to winemaking believing in the limited use of oak.
We tasted through many of her wines the 2010 Pernand-Vergelesses Village contains plenty of good minerality, the 2009 Clos Berthet Premier Cru is driven by a fresh mineral quality that rounds out the wine, Corton Charlemagne Grand Cru was explosive with citrus fruits, well balanced yet a powerful long lasting finish. Pernand Iledes premier cru 2009 crushed black cherry fruit with balance acidity and a spicy peppery finish. This wine is an excellent choice to purchase and enjoy now.
Corton Grand Cru, wow! From the moment I inhaled the amazing aromas and put this beautiful wine on my palate, I knew it would be something special, deep garnet in color with a bouquet of black cherry and spice, then on the palate those fruits explode with flavor, well rounded, a mouth full of joy and a long lingering finish.

6) Domaine Rion & Fils, Pascale-Rion contact@domaine-daniel-rion.com. Pascale is the business lady behind this Domaine’s success she is also fulltime mother of three children and a wife, experiencing all of the challenges of balancing family life and running a winery. It is Pascale’s two brothers that are at the helm of the Domaine Rion& Fils, as well as handle all winemaking. This is due to traditional family structure in Burgundy, the patriarchal structure states that the son of the father will be head of the Domaine and winemaking no matter how talented the females might be. I believe deep down Pascale would love to be a winemaker. In fact, Pascale shared a tasty wine with me that she made in 09. Domaine Rion & Fils make several excellent wines starting with the village level in new Niuts Saint George north and south, Vosne Romanée, to Echezeaux. Moving into The Grand Cru Clos Veugeot, cherry spicy with great mineralbility and balance throughout the finish of the wine.

7) Domaine Taupenot-Merme, Domaine.Taupenot-Merme@orange.fr. Ms Taupenot-Merme is President of the Association Femmes et de Bourgogne (www.fevb.net). Her Domaine is at the heart of burgundy and vineyards at Morey- Saint Denis, this estate is a place to discover the wealth of Burgundy wines. The winery spans 7 generations her father is from Coté Beaune and her mother is from Côte Nuit, Ms Taupenot-Merme attended winemaking school in Beaune France and studied business in Paris and New York, she also travel to San Francisco California to study how wine was made in the West. She returned to Bergen in 1995 and started working with her father making wine at the domain, but soon after her brother returned to the Domaine. Once again we see the patriarchal system at work as the son takes over duties as winemaker. Forced to give up her ambition of becoming a winemaker, her duties now include being in charge of all the business aspect of the Domaine. Being in control of the business aspect of the Domaine has not diminished her great passion to make wine in the future. Currently a full time mother of 2 children 2 and 6 years old, Ms. Taupenot-Merme is a working mother and a business lady all in one. Putting in 16hour days accepting and meeting the challenging aspects of the dueling duties of mother hood and handling the day-to-day operations with a staff of 11 employees of the winery head on. As with many career minded mothers there seems to never be enough time in a day to fulfill all of her obligations. Ms. Taupenot-Merme takes educating future generations of winemakers seriously and especially believes women should learn every aspect of winery operations so that one day they will have the capabilities of taking over as winemaker. She is the President and a founding member of the female wine makers Association in Burgundy, which now has approximately 39 female members.

8) Domaine Audoin, Marie-Françoise Audoin Owner wine maker for 35 years with her husband Charles and son Cyril, domaine-audion@wandoo.fr. They started this great winery with 2 hectares and through reclamation and purchasing new plots, they now have a total of 14 hectares, with most of the vines sitting hillside receiving the southeast exposure of Marsannay. Ms Audoin is a lovely engaging lady who communicated her passion and skill for winemaking to me effortlessly despite our language barrier. Marie tasted me through most of the wines that are produced at Audoin, along the way providing a history lesson on the rose Pinot Noir that is produced in Marsannay. Marsannay is the only area in Burgundy where the creation of rose of Pinot Noir is permitted. I would highly recommend Audoin rose of Pinot Noir. I tasted through the Audoin wines and found them pleasant, easy to drink and priced reasonably. The next generation winemaker at Audion will be their son Cyril , who has trained all over the world and in position himself to become a very prominent winemaker. As his parents begin to retire, Cyril is well prepared to take control of the domain and propel it to the next level.

9) Domaine Les Temps Perdus, owner winemaker Clothide Davenne, clotildedavenne@free.fr. After 17 years as a winemaker for the Brocard Winery, Ms. Davenne went about establishing her own Domaine in 2005. Ms Davenne is an experimental and innovative winemaker using Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay Pinot Noir and a locally grown grape called Caesar. She also creates an excellent sparkling wine from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Ms. Davenne is a driven, determined, hard working lady who has a vision of the future and knows how to accomplish her goals. She admits to being very controlling of the entire operation from wine making to the business side of her domain, and has little patience for others who are not as driven and as motivated as she is in completing their daily tasks. Ms. Davenne is a seasoned veteran winemaker who has traveled throughout the world to become the best wine maker possible. Clothide’s story is a bit unique as she does not come from a family of wine makers, the family farm she grew up on did not revolve around viticulture.
Her tasting journey into winemaking started with the family tradition of giving their children a spoonful of champagne around the age of 8 years old. I started tasting through numerous bottles of wine with Ms. Davenne and her trusted assistant. Starting with a sparkling Brut Rose which I have to admit it was one of the finest rose that I’ve ever tasted couple with a hard to believe price point at under 10 dollars, truly phenomenal. She also produces a fantastic Sauvignon Blanc as well as a very nice example of Pinot Noir, which is not typically grown in Chablis. Ms. Davenne’s other white wines are made from the Chardonnay grape and an excellent example of how a great Chardonnay can be made in Chablis. She also makes a Grand Cru from Chablis, which admittedly was the finest Grand Cru that I tasted in Chablis. Ms.Davenne has a Son, who is currently more passionate about thoroughbred equestrian competitions than winemaking, he does however return during harvest to assist with day to day operations at the Domaine. Ms.Davenne looks forward to the day when wine becomes his passion, so that he may take control of the Domain in the future.

I would be remiss in completing this article without another mention of the very unusual grape variety called Caesar that Ms.Davenne grows from 100 year old vines, which just happened to produce one of the best wines I tasted during my journey through Burgundy. Thank you for the great visit and delicious lunch in a quaint town.

10) Domaine Des Malandes, Owner Vigneronne Lyne Marchive, contact@domainedesmalandes.com. Ms. Marchive is from an old Chablis winemaking family: The Tremblay of Chablis and in 1972 Vigneronne started her own winery and naming it Domaine Des Malandes. Controlling 27 hectares has taught her a profound respect for the environment. Ms Marchive and her wine maker Guenole Breteaudeau attempt to produce wines with freshness, finesse and minerality that come from the kimmerdgian soil associated with Chablis. Ms. Marchive is an amazing woman who has had the passion for wine from a very early age at a time when it wasn’t socially except-able for women to become wine makers. Realizing early on that she had the gift of smell and with the support of her Father (Mr.Andre Tremblay) she refined her skills. Miss Vigneronne was accepted into wine school at the tender age of 14 years old and would have been the only female in her class yet made the bold decision to turn it down, understanding her best education would come directly from the vineyards and the cellar. Ms Marchive operates the Domaine as a world class business with the majority of her delicious production (92%) being exported to Norway. Ms. Marchive has come a long way in the wine business and has earned the respect and admiration of her colleagues in viticulture. I tasted through a wide range of Domain Malandes wines and they are exactly what Ms. Marchive has strived to accomplish, lovely acidity and freshness with minerality that lingers on the finish.

11) Domaine Chateau de Beru, wine maker and owner Athenais de Beru, www.chateaudeberu.com. The de Beru family has owned their historical Château de Béru for 400 years. The tragedy of the philloxera crisis also known as the great French wine blight caused all the vines to be uprooted in the 19th century. It wasn’t until 1987 that Éric de Béru, out of his passion for wine undertook the pain staking efforts to replant the entire vineyard, and in particular, the famous Clos Béru.
His wife, Laurence and their daughter Athénaïs are now running the Domaine, they have invested considerable means to improve the production quality and give a fresh start to the Domaine. These tremendous efforts and the choice to adopt organic farming are beginning to bear fruits, and are noticeable in the vintages that have been vinified by Athénais and her team since 2004. After facing the challenging rebirth of the family Domaine in 2003 she harvested her first vintage in 2005, then started her own brand “Athénaïs” based on a close selection of parcels and growers cultivating grapes in the respect of Chablis terroirs.

I tasted three wines from Domaine de Beru the 07 and 09 Clos Beru from Monopole, the grapes are harvested by hand and fermented in old oak barrels without fining and filtration. The wine is aged for 18 months. This is a very unique wine. It was well rounded with fresh acidity, minerality and salt/iodinated lime on the finish. This is a complex, well-structured wine with it’s own identity.
Chateau de Beru also has a wonderful B&B on the property that is managed by her mother who makes a great breakfast every morning. Thanks for the hospitality.