WHOLESALE LIST
All of these wines are produced by small growers who make wines that we find exciting, vibrant and delicious. In general they are at the very least organic, rely on natural yeasts for fermentation with minimal additions in the cellar, sometimes none. The list is subject to change. All prices ex VAT.
GRAIN PAR GRAIN, ARTEMARE, BUGEY
CAROLINE LEDÉDENTÉ
Caroline worked in wine in Paris and this is where she discovered natural wine, after being told by a sommelier that ‘they all taste the same’ she went to find out for herself and at Vinisat, a wine fair she had a moment with a bottle from Pat Desplats. She never looked back. After studying in a viticultural school in the Jura she went to stage with a few winemakers and spent time with Gregoire Perron in Bugey, which is where she found her inspiration to start in this region.
For her first vintage she only had one parcel of Chardonnay and everything else was negociant, but now she works two hectares of her own vineyards split around South Bugey. She looks for small, isolated parcels of native varieties with good biodiversity, for example fruit trees planned among the vines. Soils are rich in limestone and clay.
EN PLEIN NATURE £18
80% Gamay 20% Chardonnay co-fermented for 12 days whole bunch. This has the lovely bright red fruit we expect of the region, with lovely acidity, texture and freshness. We like it chilled.
MERIGNAT, BUGEY
LOUIS TERRAL
Louis Terral is in his own words a ‘nomad’ originally from the resort town of Royan and after some wandering, now set up in Bugey, the home of his wife. He came to winemaking in 2013 and worked with among others Julie Balagny, Michel Guignier, Jean-Louis Dutraive & Phillip Valette, a very good education among great winemakers and beautiful vineyards. While visiting the home of his wife and spending some time working with biodynamic sparkling wine producer Raphael Bartucci he saw the potential of Bugey vineyards. Indeed he is the only winemaker in the village to make still wine in a place that is a stronghold of the Bugey-Cerdon sparkling tradition. He purchased his first vineyard in 2016, while still working for other vignerons and has grown that to 2 hectares of mostly Gamay with a smattering of Chardonnay. He practises Biodynamics methods in the vineyard, is certified organic and will be certified by Demeter next year and is very interested in farming, influenced more latterly by Fukuoka (we spoke of the radical methods of Patrick Desplats when we visited). . These are elegant, fine and detailed wines that show the true potential of Bugey. All wines are made without additions.
The wines are all named after famous women. For example: Vera Rubin who discovered dark matter, Lucie Aubrac, a member of the French resistance.
MARGUERITE 2019 £15.50
100% Gamay from 20 year old vines planted on limestone. After a short whole bunch maceration of around 15 days, the juice is aged in tank, then bottled during the following spring. Lovely tart fruit with notes of plum and damson this is his most direct and juicy style, but with no lack of elegance
VERA 2019 £19
The 2019 vintage had less heat than 2018, bringing more acidity and freshness to the wines, along with Louis’ work in the vineyards, biodynamic for three years now bringing he believes more balance. The 2019 has more acidity and tart fruit and really wonderful length.
VERA 2020 £19.50
2020 was a hot year, bringing a brooding darker fruit to this wine, but still with beautiful balance, acidity and bright fruit. Starting to drink well, but experience says this will age wonderfully.