Jura And Savoie Chapter From Wine Report 2004
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Jura & Savoie Wink Lorch Since 1997, the biggest event in the region has been the Percée du Vin Jaune, which is held over a weekend in February at a different village each year. In 2003, it was the turn of the beautiful old village of Arlay in the Côtes du Jura, with the focal point being the grand Château d’Arlay, owned by the Comte de Laguiche. A recordbreaking 50,000 visitors attended, and it was said that there were more journalists than there were vignerons exhibiting – and there were over 60 of them! The most serious part of the weekend is WINK LORCH the clavelinage. Named after the distinctive 62-cl clavelin bottle used for vin jaune, the clavelinage is a tasting competition to find the best vins jaunes. This year, for the first time, the tasting was run under official EU competition rules and supervised by a representative from INAO (Institut National des Appellations d’Origine). Around 60 vins jaunes were submitted, mostly 1995s and 1996s, but with some going back to 1989, and all four appellations (Château-Chalon, Arbois, Côtes du Jura, and Etoile) were represented. A maximum of one third of the entries may become claveliné, and in fact just 17 were given the award, including two from Henri Maire, the largest négociant in the area. The most public event was the ceremony of the percée itself, which involves the symbolic opening of a barrel of vin jaune that has just been released after its statutory six years and three months of ageing. Thousands of eager supporters of this strange wine were prepared to stand in the cold, listening WINK LORCH is a wine writer and educator with a passion for the mountains and a chalet in the Haute-Savoie. She is chairman of the Association of Wine Educators and has contributed to several books, including Time-Life’s The Wine Guide, The Global Wine Encyclopedia, and Le Cordon Bleu’s Wine Essentials. Wink particularly enjoys enthusing about wines from vineyards in sight of snow-capped mountains, whether the Andes, the Alps, or the Jura. She divides her time between the UK and the French Alps.
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to endless speeches while waiting to be served the first tastes of the ‘new’ vintage, which in 2003 was the 1996. On both afternoons, the village of Arlay thronged with people out to taste and buy the whole range of Jura wines directly from the producers participating in the event. Make a date for next year’s celebration in the village of Cramans, on 7–8 February 2004.
Top sommelier champions small producers Stéphane Planche, head sommelier of the Michelin two-star restaurant JeanPaul Jeunet in Arbois and a great supporter of fine Jura wines, has opened a shop, Les Jardins de St-Vincent, in the centre of Arbois. He sells a selection of Jura wines from a generally eclectic bunch of smaller producers who do not have their own retail outlets in Arbois, as so many of the large producers do. This should introduce a new style of Jura wine to a wider public.
New-style Savagnin Increasing numbers of Savagnin white wines are being made using the nontraditional methods of ageing in topped-up vats or barrels. While this might be the norm everywhere else in the world, it most certainly has not been in the Jura, where such wines are usually stored in part-filled vessels. This deliberate oxidation is intended to start off the Savagnin as potential vin jaune. Certain producers in Arbois have adopted the non-traditional approach for Chardonnay over many years, but it is a new direction for Savagnin. Most of these new Savagnin wines are bottled in a fresh style with plenty of lees contact. The result is a fresh but intense, tangy wine, not typical of oldstyle Jura, but a worthy addition to the myriad existing styles, and, of course, it offers a much wider appeal. Philippe Chatillon at Domaine de la Pinte has gone one step further with his Cuvée S, vinified and aged in new oak.
Savoie can’t get no satisfaction With the best Savoie estates always moaning about a lack of wine to sell, and often bottling too early in order to satisfy demand, this is one region of France that would love the freedom of the New World to expand its vineyards. Just 20 hectares (ha) of new vineyard plantings are authorized each year (a 1 per cent expansion of the total Savoie vineyard area), and in the past few years some of this allocation has been used to replant hillside vineyards previously abandoned due to the difficulty of working them. Notable are the new plantings higher up the south-facing slope of the Marestel cru above the village of Jongieux, in sight of the river Rhône. Here, several Jongieux producers have just finished a project to plant a further 8 ha with the traditional Altesse (Roussette de Savoie) variety. Other steep slopes have been replanted in the Combe de Savoie area between Chignin and Fréterive, mainly with Mondeuse and some with Bergeron (Roussanne).
ANCIENT VINE VARIETIES PRESERVED An experimental vineyard has been established at St-Jean de la Porte, in the Combe de Savoie, by the Comité Interprofessionnel. Various clones of traditional Savoie varieties have been planted, both those in current use and others that have all but disappeared. The first harvest will be microvinified in 2004. Meanwhile, the first vintages of two revived grape varieties have been launched. One is from a whitewine variety known in Savoie as Malvoisie, but generally thought to be the Veltliner Rouge. The other is from an ancient red-wine variety, the Persan, which was widely planted pre-phylloxera. Although both are thought to have a good future, the
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Persan seems to have the greater potential. Indeed, the Persan is likely to be responsible for the Savoie’s first premium-priced vin de pays. The 2003 vintage should see this eagerly awaited varietal’s revival under the Vin de Pays d’Allobrogie appellation from 5 ha of recently planted vines on a formerly abandoned slope at Cevins, in the Tarentaise valley. Mastermind of the project is Michel Grisard, the biodynamic producer of Domaine Prieuré Saint-Christophe. He is amazed by the ripeness levels being achieved there even from very young vines. The main red plantings are of the virtually unknown old Persan variety, for which Grisard has high hopes, and there is a selection of white varieties that may be used to make a late-harvest wine.
Grapevine • A new standard half-bottle shape
not be sold as vin jaune, but only as a simple white Côtes du Jura. is being designed for the various vin de paille AOCs of the Jura. At present, there Late harvest has arrived in Chignin, is a wide variety of bottle shapes in use. where several producers have launched late-harvest Chignin Bergerons, notably Château-Chalon is still awaiting a from the 2000 vintage. response from the INAO regarding its application to gain grand cru status. The Wild boars became a menace at Château-Chalon AOC covers ChâteauChignin in 2001 and 2002. They came Chalon and four other villages. down from the forested hillsides to cause damage and reduced crops in some of the Compulsory tasting under the best vineyards used for the production auspices of the INAO will soon come into force in order for Château-Chalon of Chignin Bergeron and Mondeuse. Agreement is being sought with local to attain its AOC status. The wines will hunting groups to control the situation. be tasted before bottling, but after the obligatory six years of cask-ageing. The Raymond Quenard in Chignin is going vintage concerned will be the 1997, into semi-retirement and has passed on which may be sold only from January some of his vineyards to his son Pascal, who 2004. Although the producers are in runs a separate estate (Pascal et Annick general agreement, this is bound to Quenard) with his wife. Raymond Quenard, cause some controversy, especially if who sells to many of the best restaurants wines are rejected. Those rejected may in the area, has retained just 2 ha of vines.
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Opinion: Jura red or rosé?
The confusion between reds and rosés on producers’ lists is a problem to consumers, and it is exacerbated by the Comité Interprofessionnel’s summer 2002 advertising campaign for Rosé du Jura. It stated Si bon qu’il en rougit (meaning “so good it blushes”, with a pun on the word rouge). They then launched a confusing winter campaign for rubis to promote lighter reds. While these campaigns were widely derided by producers, many continue to list wines from the Poulsard grape under rosés despite the fact that they are vinified as red wines. The terms corail or rubis are used by a few producers. The region needs to decide to market all these wines simply as reds, even if they are light-coloured.
Jaundiced quality There are still too many producers not taking vin jaune production seriously enough and selling substandard products to the supermarkets at a discount. A good producer will, in a typical year, reject around 70 per cent of his barrels of potential vin jaune, using it for white wine instead. The temptation to put substandard barrels through the statutory six years of ageing in order to market at the considerably higher price achieved by vin jaune is great. The introduction of the clavelinage competition gives an incentive for producers to aim for higher quality, but the local INAO and individual appellation syndicats must be vigilant to preserve the integrity of the region’s most important product in terms of reputation.
Savoie sugar levels Maximum residual-sugar levels in Savoie whites are not specified in the appellation laws, resulting in a wide variation of styles. This can be a problem for wines from both Jacquère and Altesse (Roussette) varieties, since consumers do not know if they are getting very dry, dry, off-dry, or even medium-dry wine. For Jacquère (used in the making of Apremont, Abymes, Chignin, and Jongieux among other crus), the style should be dry, with around 2–4 grams of residual sugar per litre to balance the high acidity. The rather fuller-flavoured, but equally acidic, Altesse can cope with up to 6 or 7 grams of sugar per litre, but there are still some producers making sweeter wines. With a gradual reduction of yields in Savoie, resulting in a greater concentration of fruit, there should be even less need to use residual sugar for balance. Drier styles certainly match local foods better than sweeter ones.
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Could do better The general quality of wines handled mainly by local négociants is still too low, bringing down the image of the area. The tourist market (principally the winter-sports visitor) is all too easy to satisfy with thin, acidic wines to wash down a fondue or tartiflette. The worst quality is to be found from the largest and best-known crus of Apremont and Abymes. The Comité Interprofessionnel has taken steps to improve this by invoking the INAO initiative to systematically check on yields in the vineyards at the véraison stage, by taking the new AOC agrément laws seriously, and by practising random sampling in local shops and restaurants. But this is none too soon. With the French wine consumer becoming more demanding, Savoie needs to be very careful if it is to maximize its potential. The négociants should listen carefully to the views of proprietors of the leading quality estates.
Urgent review of labelling required For any development of Jura wine sales beyond the traditional local market, an urgent review of labelling laws is essential. At present, many white Jura wines are labelled with the simple AOC (Arbois, Côtes du Jura, or Etoile), with no mention of grape variety or, even more importantly, style. This is a big problem, because many wines are still made in the traditional oxidized, or partly oxidized, style – aged under voile (a layer of yeast similar to flor and essential for vin jaune production). Others are made in the more conventional, fresher, Burgundian way of topping up barrels or vats completely. Some producers name the former style typé or tradition and the latter floral, but there is no agreed standard term and the two styles of wine taste completely different. Some producers do not state the grape variety either, and the wine may be Chardonnay, Savagnin, or a blend of the two. Current appellation laws permit the naming of a single variety, but not a blend. No term will please all producers, but a solution must be found to eliminate the current confusion.
Straw law could be the last straw The rules on vin de paille production need reviewing to give growers more flexibility. At present, vin de paille is required to have a minimum of 14.5 per cent alcohol, and three years in oak. This limits the styles of wines that can be produced, and is forcing some, like Stéphane Tissot of Domaine André et Mireille Tissot, to produce a similar style of wine, but with lower alcohol and higher sugar level, outside the auspices of the appellation. The regulations must be changed if the appellation is to survive.
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Côtes du Jura lost within its own appellation Although smaller than the Arbois AOC, the Côtes du Jura AOC is much more diverse and spread over a vastly larger geographic area. The region needs to consider applying to the INAO for a system of crus or named villages to highlight the terroir differences. A vendange tardive designation should be allowed for Chignin Bergeron, since this would encourage more growers to aim for lower yields and increase the value of their production.
Save the grapes There should be more flexibility for producers who want to plant old traditional varieties such as Persan, Mondeuse Blanche, or Veltliner Rouge (known locally as Malvoisie). At present, these so-called minor varieties are only allowed to represent up to 10 per cent of any single vineyard holding. These old varieties should be preserved and encouraged, to give added value and interest to the wines of Savoie. Of these varieties, there is wide agreement that the Mondeuse is the most important redwine variety for Savoie, and in the right conditions it can produce highquality, age-worthy wines. However, more study is needed into the best ways of cultivating, vinifying, and ageing Mondeuse. Styles are many, and the best producers are doing a good job; but many young producers are scared of using expensive oak barrels, for example, because not enough research has been done into oak‘s compatibility with Mondeuse.
management for the vineyards of Château de Monterminod, which are planted exclusively with Altesse. Following the premature death of Gilbert Bouvet, the future of G & G Bouvet, which used to run the château’s vineyards, is in question. Management has therefore passed to Jean Perrier et Fils, which continues to bottle Château
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Vintage Report Advance report on the latest harvest 2002
Late harvest overdue
Grapevine • There has been a change of
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Jura – After a difficult summer, the north wind dried the grapes at the end of August, and a period of fine weather in September and early October gave overall good quality, if not great quantity. Nearly all varieties showed both good natural ripeness and high acidity levels. This bodes well for vin jaune in the future. However, a mild December meant that many vin de paille producers were struggling to get the requisite degrees. Those who waited until the cold snap in January should have achieved the right results. A promising vintage. Savoie – Three weeks of fine, warm weather, accompanied by a cold north wind in late September and early October, saved the harvest after a relatively cool and wet August. It was considerably better for the later varieties, Jacquère and Mondeuse. Mondeuse shows particular promise from the Combe de Savoie. Altesse suffered from rot in places and is varied, though there was some concentration on the vine in the cru Marestel, and very good wines might have been made. Overall, a varied but fairly good vintage, with low to average quantities, but nowhere near as successful as in the Jura.
Updates on the previous five vintages 2001
de Monterminod as individual-estate wines and will soon be launching the fine 2000 vintage.
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A new Maison du Vin will be built at Apremont in 2004. As well as being a centre for the various local official wine bodies, it will also act as a regional wine centre, welcoming groups for tastings and other events.
Vintage rating: 67 (Jura: 69, Savoie: 64) Jura – A generally difficult, fairly small, and variable vintage. Growers decided to declassify all Château-Chalon before the pre-harvest inspection due to slightly low degrees of both sugar and acidity. However, soon after, the weather improved and there should be some decent vin jaune, though not under the Château-Chalon AOC. For the rest of the wine styles, there is much variation, with only those who made a severe selection making potentially elegant and balanced Chardonnays and Savagnins. Savoie – A difficult year for many, with some mildew and intermittent hailstorms in places reducing quantities. It was cool at the start of September. Better producers who carried out careful selection at the vine have produced reasonable wines across the board, but generally a mediumquality vintage for all varieties and especially difficult for reds.
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2000 Vintage rating: 79 (Jura: 78, Savoie:81) Jura – A rather cool summer gave, in the end, a good-quality vintage overall, with attractive fruit characteristics, reasonable structure, but some lack of concentration, often due to high yields. Enjoy these wines before the 1999s. Savoie – A good year overall with good yields, too. There was concentrated Bergeron and Altesse, but a lack of weight and structure in Mondeuse has resulted in quick-maturing reds.
GREATEST WINE PRODUCERS Jura 1 Domaine André et Mireille Tissot 2 Domaine Labet Père et Fils 3 Domaine Rolet Père et Fils 4 Domaine Berthet-Bondet 5 Domaine Jacques Puffeney 6 Domaine Jacques Tissot 7 Domaine Baud Père et Fils Savoie
1999 Vintage rating: 84 (Jura: 87, Savoie:78) Jura – An extremely sunny year gave the highest sugar levels ever seen in most varieties, great fruit concentration, and good yields, too. There were excellent overall results, especially for Chardonnay. It may lack the high acidity for the real long-term ageing. Savoie – There was some variation, but overall a good year with both Roussette and Mondeuse capable of ageing well.
1998
1 Domaine Prieuré Saint-Christophe 2 Domaine Louis Magnin 3 Domaine Dupasquier
FASTEST-IMPROVING PRODUCERS Jura 1 Frédéric Lornet 2 Domaine de la Pinte Savoie 1 Jean-Pierre & Jean-François Quenard 2 Jean-Pierre & Philippe Grisard 3 Pascal et Annick Quenard
Vintage rating: 77 (Jura: 79, Savoie: 75) Jura – Though this year was spoiled by rain in September, most producers were able to harvest a reasonable, healthy crop. Somewhat light, but wellbalanced wines overall. Savoie – Difficult spring and summer weather conditions gave relatively light, early-drinking wines, although it is an overall decent vintage.
1997 Vintage rating: 83 (Jura: 81, Savoie: 85)
NEW UP-ANDCOMING PRODUCERS Jura 1 Domaine de la Renardière 2 Domaine Ganevat 3 Domaine de la Tournelle 4 Domaine Ligier Père et Fils Savoie 1 Domaine St-Germain
Jura – This was a year with good ripeness levels, but somewhat low acidity levels. The vins jaunes that will be released in 2004 should be of reasonable, rounded quality, perhaps maturing faster than some years.
BEST-VALUE PRODUCERS
Savoie – A sunny year that gave very good, rich wines. It was especially successful for Mondeuse, and good structure for Roussette de Savoie, the best of which are lasting well.
Jura 1 Domaine Rolet Père et Fils 2 Château Béthanie, Fruitière Vinicole d’Arbois 3 Daniel Dugois
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Savoie 1 Domaine Dupasquier 2 Edmond Jacquin et Fils 3 André & Michel Quenard 4 Domaine de l’Idylle 5 Jean Perrier et Fils
(Sélection Gilbert Perrier range) 6 Domaine de Rocailles 7 Eugène Carrel et Fils
GREATEST-QUALITY WINES According to Jean Macle, vin jaune needs 10 years in bottle (16+ years from the vintage) before reaching perfection, so the Château-Chalons and vins jaunes selected do need time.The Chardonnays can be drunk from now.Tissot’s Les Bruyères has more oak than the others.The Savoie wines can be approached now, but will also age well for several years. Jura 1 Château-Chalon 1995 Jean Macle (€27) 2 Château-Chalon 1996 Domaine Berthet-Bondet (€28) 3 Côtes du Jura Chardonnay Les Varrons 2000 Domaine Labet Père et Fils (€11) 4 Arbois Chardonnay Les Bruyères 2000 Domaine André et Mireille Tissot (€12.20) 5 Arbois Vin Jaune 1994 Domaine Jacques Puffeney (€27) 6 Côtes du Jura Chardonnay Fleur de Marne, La Bardette 1998 Domaine Labet Père et Fils (€10.70) Savoie 1 Roussette de Savoie 2000 Domaine Prieuré Saint-Christophe (€13) 2 Vin de Savoie Mondeuse d’Arbin Vieilles Vignes 2000 Domaine Louis Magnin (€10)
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3 Vin de Savoie Chignin
Bergeron Vielles Vignes 2001 Jean-Pierre & Jean-François Quenard (€8) 4 Vin de Savoie Mondeuse Tradition 2001 Domaine Prieuré Saint-Christophe (€13)
BEST BARGAINS The Jura selections are enjoyable now. From Savoie, the Apremont, Abymes, and Cruet should be drunk early.The rest will repay some ageing. Jura 1 Arbois Chardonnay 2000 Domaine Rolet Père et Fils (€7) 2 Arbois Chardonnay Vieilles Vignes 2000 Fruitière Vinicole d’Arbois (€7) 3 Crémant du Jura Brut Prestige Grand Frères (€6.60) Savoie 1 Roussette de Savoie Marestel
2000 Domaine Dupasquier (€6.80) 2 Roussette de Savoie 2001 Edmond Jacquin et Fils (€4.70) 3 Vin de Savoie Chignin Bergeron Les Terrasses 2001 André & Michel Quenard (€7.80) 4 Vin de Savoie Cruet Vieilles Vignes 2001 Domaine de l’Idylle (€4.50) 5 Mondeuse d’Arbin, Graine de Terroir, Selection Gilbert Perrier 2001 Jean Perrier et Fils (€6.60) 6 Vin de Savoie Apremont Prestiges de Rocaille 2002 Pierre Boniface (€5) 7 Vin de Savoie Abymes 2002 Château de la Violette (€3.40)
MOST EXCITING OR UNUSUAL FINDS Jura 1 Spirale Passerillé sur Paille 1998 Domaine André et Mireille Tissot (€24 per half-bottle) Technically a partially fermented must with just 8.5 per cent alcohol, but 300 grams of residual sugar per litre. Made as a vin de paille from Savagnin, Chardonnay, and Poulsard grapes, dried unusually on real straw in wooden boxes, this wine does not have the level of alcohol required by the appellation laws for vin de paille. 2 Arbois Naturé 1999 Frédéric Lornet (€8.50) Savagnin from a very ripe year, aged on lees in large wooden foudres for 18 months, kept meticulously topped up. Naturé is the old Jura name for Savagnin. 3 Arbois-Pupillin Vendange Oublié 2001 Domaine de la Renardière (€8.50) This is two thirds Chardonnay, one third Savagnin, harvested late and partly vinified in barrel, with a little new oak and then aged with the barrels fully topped up. 4 Arbois Trousseau Cuvée Grevillière 1999 Daniel Dugois (€8) From a year with plenty of sunshine, this is one of the few traditional Jura reds tasted this year that shows true ripeness. A real pleasure to drink. 5 Arbois Savagnin Naturé 2000 Domaine Jacques Tissot (€10.40) Another Savagnin made in a fresh, non-oxidative style. 6 Arbois Savagnin Cuvée S 1999 Domaine de la Pinte (€25) Probably the only Jura Savagnin that has been vinified and matured in 100 per cent new
oak barrels, fully topped up. Made as top-level white Burgundy might be. 7 Côtes du Jura Pinot Noir Cuvée Julien Ganevat 2001 Domaine Ganevat (€8.50) JeanFrançois Ganevat demonstrates with this wine that, even from the difficult 2001, it is possible to make an elegant, but structured, Pinot with a Burgundian character of the best sort. 8 Arbois Savagnin Fleur de Savagnin 2000 Domaine de la Tournelle (€10) Pascal Clairet does not enjoy making traditional oxidized Savagnin as much as this fresh style, which has had almost two years in barrel, topped up. Savoie 1 Vin de Savoie Le Bergeron
d’Elisa 2000 Jean-Pierre & JeanFrançois Quenard (€16 per halfbottle) The Bergeron, alias Roussane, can achieve great ripeness on the slopes of Chignin in good years. Here the grapes have been left to ripen late to give a vendange tardive style. 2 Vin de Savoie Persan 2001 Jean-Pierre et Philippe Grisard (€7.50) From the rare red-grape variety Persan, the structure and fruit of this wine, from very young vines in a difficult vintage, shows why there is such a buzz of excitement about its revival.
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Jura & Savoie Wink Lorch Since 1997, the biggest event in the region has been the Percée du Vin Jaune, which is held over a weekend in February at a different village each year. In 2003, it was the turn of the beautiful old village of Arlay in the Côtes du Jura, with the focal point being the grand Château d’Arlay, owned by the Comte de Laguiche. A recordbreaking 50,000 visitors attended, and it was said that there were more journalists than there were vignerons exhibiting – and there were over 60 of them! The most serious part of the weekend is WINK LORCH the clavelinage. Named after the distinctive 62-cl clavelin bottle used for vin jaune, the clavelinage is a tasting competition to find the best vins jaunes. This year, for the first time, the tasting was run under official EU competition rules and supervised by a representative from INAO (Institut National des Appellations d’Origine). Around 60 vins jaunes were submitted, mostly 1995s and 1996s, but with some going back to 1989, and all four appellations (Château-Chalon, Arbois, Côtes du Jura, and Etoile) were represented. A maximum of one third of the entries may become claveliné, and in fact just 17 were given the award, including two from Henri Maire, the largest négociant in the area. The most public event was the ceremony of the percée itself, which involves the symbolic opening of a barrel of vin jaune that has just been released after its statutory six years and three months of ageing. Thousands of eager supporters of this strange wine were prepared to stand in the cold, listening WINK LORCH is a wine writer and educator with a passion for the mountains and a chalet in the Haute-Savoie. She is chairman of the Association of Wine Educators and has contributed to several books, including Time-Life’s The Wine Guide, The Global Wine Encyclopedia, and Le Cordon Bleu’s Wine Essentials. Wink particularly enjoys enthusing about wines from vineyards in sight of snow-capped mountains, whether the Andes, the Alps, or the Jura. She divides her time between the UK and the French Alps.
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to endless speeches while waiting to be served the first tastes of the ‘new’ vintage, which in 2003 was the 1996. On both afternoons, the village of Arlay thronged with people out to taste and buy the whole range of Jura wines directly from the producers participating in the event. Make a date for next year’s celebration in the village of Cramans, on 7–8 February 2004.
Top sommelier champions small producers Stéphane Planche, head sommelier of the Michelin two-star restaurant JeanPaul Jeunet in Arbois and a great supporter of fine Jura wines, has opened a shop, Les Jardins de St-Vincent, in the centre of Arbois. He sells a selection of Jura wines from a generally eclectic bunch of smaller producers who do not have their own retail outlets in Arbois, as so many of the large producers do. This should introduce a new style of Jura wine to a wider public.
New-style Savagnin Increasing numbers of Savagnin white wines are being made using the nontraditional methods of ageing in topped-up vats or barrels. While this might be the norm everywhere else in the world, it most certainly has not been in the Jura, where such wines are usually stored in part-filled vessels. This deliberate oxidation is intended to start off the Savagnin as potential vin jaune. Certain producers in Arbois have adopted the non-traditional approach for Chardonnay over many years, but it is a new direction for Savagnin. Most of these new Savagnin wines are bottled in a fresh style with plenty of lees contact. The result is a fresh but intense, tangy wine, not typical of oldstyle Jura, but a worthy addition to the myriad existing styles, and, of course, it offers a much wider appeal. Philippe Chatillon at Domaine de la Pinte has gone one step further with his Cuvée S, vinified and aged in new oak.
Savoie can’t get no satisfaction With the best Savoie estates always moaning about a lack of wine to sell, and often bottling too early in order to satisfy demand, this is one region of France that would love the freedom of the New World to expand its vineyards. Just 20 hectares (ha) of new vineyard plantings are authorized each year (a 1 per cent expansion of the total Savoie vineyard area), and in the past few years some of this allocation has been used to replant hillside vineyards previously abandoned due to the difficulty of working them. Notable are the new plantings higher up the south-facing slope of the Marestel cru above the village of Jongieux, in sight of the river Rhône. Here, several Jongieux producers have just finished a project to plant a further 8 ha with the traditional Altesse (Roussette de Savoie) variety. Other steep slopes have been replanted in the Combe de Savoie area between Chignin and Fréterive, mainly with Mondeuse and some with Bergeron (Roussanne).
ANCIENT VINE VARIETIES PRESERVED An experimental vineyard has been established at St-Jean de la Porte, in the Combe de Savoie, by the Comité Interprofessionnel. Various clones of traditional Savoie varieties have been planted, both those in current use and others that have all but disappeared. The first harvest will be microvinified in 2004. Meanwhile, the first vintages of two revived grape varieties have been launched. One is from a whitewine variety known in Savoie as Malvoisie, but generally thought to be the Veltliner Rouge. The other is from an ancient red-wine variety, the Persan, which was widely planted pre-phylloxera. Although both are thought to have a good future, the
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Persan seems to have the greater potential. Indeed, the Persan is likely to be responsible for the Savoie’s first premium-priced vin de pays. The 2003 vintage should see this eagerly awaited varietal’s revival under the Vin de Pays d’Allobrogie appellation from 5 ha of recently planted vines on a formerly abandoned slope at Cevins, in the Tarentaise valley. Mastermind of the project is Michel Grisard, the biodynamic producer of Domaine Prieuré Saint-Christophe. He is amazed by the ripeness levels being achieved there even from very young vines. The main red plantings are of the virtually unknown old Persan variety, for which Grisard has high hopes, and there is a selection of white varieties that may be used to make a late-harvest wine.
Grapevine • A new standard half-bottle shape
not be sold as vin jaune, but only as a simple white Côtes du Jura. is being designed for the various vin de paille AOCs of the Jura. At present, there Late harvest has arrived in Chignin, is a wide variety of bottle shapes in use. where several producers have launched late-harvest Chignin Bergerons, notably Château-Chalon is still awaiting a from the 2000 vintage. response from the INAO regarding its application to gain grand cru status. The Wild boars became a menace at Château-Chalon AOC covers ChâteauChignin in 2001 and 2002. They came Chalon and four other villages. down from the forested hillsides to cause damage and reduced crops in some of the Compulsory tasting under the best vineyards used for the production auspices of the INAO will soon come into force in order for Château-Chalon of Chignin Bergeron and Mondeuse. Agreement is being sought with local to attain its AOC status. The wines will hunting groups to control the situation. be tasted before bottling, but after the obligatory six years of cask-ageing. The Raymond Quenard in Chignin is going vintage concerned will be the 1997, into semi-retirement and has passed on which may be sold only from January some of his vineyards to his son Pascal, who 2004. Although the producers are in runs a separate estate (Pascal et Annick general agreement, this is bound to Quenard) with his wife. Raymond Quenard, cause some controversy, especially if who sells to many of the best restaurants wines are rejected. Those rejected may in the area, has retained just 2 ha of vines.
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Opinion: Jura red or rosé?
The confusion between reds and rosés on producers’ lists is a problem to consumers, and it is exacerbated by the Comité Interprofessionnel’s summer 2002 advertising campaign for Rosé du Jura. It stated Si bon qu’il en rougit (meaning “so good it blushes”, with a pun on the word rouge). They then launched a confusing winter campaign for rubis to promote lighter reds. While these campaigns were widely derided by producers, many continue to list wines from the Poulsard grape under rosés despite the fact that they are vinified as red wines. The terms corail or rubis are used by a few producers. The region needs to decide to market all these wines simply as reds, even if they are light-coloured.
Jaundiced quality There are still too many producers not taking vin jaune production seriously enough and selling substandard products to the supermarkets at a discount. A good producer will, in a typical year, reject around 70 per cent of his barrels of potential vin jaune, using it for white wine instead. The temptation to put substandard barrels through the statutory six years of ageing in order to market at the considerably higher price achieved by vin jaune is great. The introduction of the clavelinage competition gives an incentive for producers to aim for higher quality, but the local INAO and individual appellation syndicats must be vigilant to preserve the integrity of the region’s most important product in terms of reputation.
Savoie sugar levels Maximum residual-sugar levels in Savoie whites are not specified in the appellation laws, resulting in a wide variation of styles. This can be a problem for wines from both Jacquère and Altesse (Roussette) varieties, since consumers do not know if they are getting very dry, dry, off-dry, or even medium-dry wine. For Jacquère (used in the making of Apremont, Abymes, Chignin, and Jongieux among other crus), the style should be dry, with around 2–4 grams of residual sugar per litre to balance the high acidity. The rather fuller-flavoured, but equally acidic, Altesse can cope with up to 6 or 7 grams of sugar per litre, but there are still some producers making sweeter wines. With a gradual reduction of yields in Savoie, resulting in a greater concentration of fruit, there should be even less need to use residual sugar for balance. Drier styles certainly match local foods better than sweeter ones.
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Could do better The general quality of wines handled mainly by local négociants is still too low, bringing down the image of the area. The tourist market (principally the winter-sports visitor) is all too easy to satisfy with thin, acidic wines to wash down a fondue or tartiflette. The worst quality is to be found from the largest and best-known crus of Apremont and Abymes. The Comité Interprofessionnel has taken steps to improve this by invoking the INAO initiative to systematically check on yields in the vineyards at the véraison stage, by taking the new AOC agrément laws seriously, and by practising random sampling in local shops and restaurants. But this is none too soon. With the French wine consumer becoming more demanding, Savoie needs to be very careful if it is to maximize its potential. The négociants should listen carefully to the views of proprietors of the leading quality estates.
Urgent review of labelling required For any development of Jura wine sales beyond the traditional local market, an urgent review of labelling laws is essential. At present, many white Jura wines are labelled with the simple AOC (Arbois, Côtes du Jura, or Etoile), with no mention of grape variety or, even more importantly, style. This is a big problem, because many wines are still made in the traditional oxidized, or partly oxidized, style – aged under voile (a layer of yeast similar to flor and essential for vin jaune production). Others are made in the more conventional, fresher, Burgundian way of topping up barrels or vats completely. Some producers name the former style typé or tradition and the latter floral, but there is no agreed standard term and the two styles of wine taste completely different. Some producers do not state the grape variety either, and the wine may be Chardonnay, Savagnin, or a blend of the two. Current appellation laws permit the naming of a single variety, but not a blend. No term will please all producers, but a solution must be found to eliminate the current confusion.
Straw law could be the last straw The rules on vin de paille production need reviewing to give growers more flexibility. At present, vin de paille is required to have a minimum of 14.5 per cent alcohol, and three years in oak. This limits the styles of wines that can be produced, and is forcing some, like Stéphane Tissot of Domaine André et Mireille Tissot, to produce a similar style of wine, but with lower alcohol and higher sugar level, outside the auspices of the appellation. The regulations must be changed if the appellation is to survive.
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Côtes du Jura lost within its own appellation Although smaller than the Arbois AOC, the Côtes du Jura AOC is much more diverse and spread over a vastly larger geographic area. The region needs to consider applying to the INAO for a system of crus or named villages to highlight the terroir differences. A vendange tardive designation should be allowed for Chignin Bergeron, since this would encourage more growers to aim for lower yields and increase the value of their production.
Save the grapes There should be more flexibility for producers who want to plant old traditional varieties such as Persan, Mondeuse Blanche, or Veltliner Rouge (known locally as Malvoisie). At present, these so-called minor varieties are only allowed to represent up to 10 per cent of any single vineyard holding. These old varieties should be preserved and encouraged, to give added value and interest to the wines of Savoie. Of these varieties, there is wide agreement that the Mondeuse is the most important redwine variety for Savoie, and in the right conditions it can produce highquality, age-worthy wines. However, more study is needed into the best ways of cultivating, vinifying, and ageing Mondeuse. Styles are many, and the best producers are doing a good job; but many young producers are scared of using expensive oak barrels, for example, because not enough research has been done into oak‘s compatibility with Mondeuse.
management for the vineyards of Château de Monterminod, which are planted exclusively with Altesse. Following the premature death of Gilbert Bouvet, the future of G & G Bouvet, which used to run the château’s vineyards, is in question. Management has therefore passed to Jean Perrier et Fils, which continues to bottle Château
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Vintage Report Advance report on the latest harvest 2002
Late harvest overdue
Grapevine • There has been a change of
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Jura – After a difficult summer, the north wind dried the grapes at the end of August, and a period of fine weather in September and early October gave overall good quality, if not great quantity. Nearly all varieties showed both good natural ripeness and high acidity levels. This bodes well for vin jaune in the future. However, a mild December meant that many vin de paille producers were struggling to get the requisite degrees. Those who waited until the cold snap in January should have achieved the right results. A promising vintage. Savoie – Three weeks of fine, warm weather, accompanied by a cold north wind in late September and early October, saved the harvest after a relatively cool and wet August. It was considerably better for the later varieties, Jacquère and Mondeuse. Mondeuse shows particular promise from the Combe de Savoie. Altesse suffered from rot in places and is varied, though there was some concentration on the vine in the cru Marestel, and very good wines might have been made. Overall, a varied but fairly good vintage, with low to average quantities, but nowhere near as successful as in the Jura.
Updates on the previous five vintages 2001
de Monterminod as individual-estate wines and will soon be launching the fine 2000 vintage.
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A new Maison du Vin will be built at Apremont in 2004. As well as being a centre for the various local official wine bodies, it will also act as a regional wine centre, welcoming groups for tastings and other events.
Vintage rating: 67 (Jura: 69, Savoie: 64) Jura – A generally difficult, fairly small, and variable vintage. Growers decided to declassify all Château-Chalon before the pre-harvest inspection due to slightly low degrees of both sugar and acidity. However, soon after, the weather improved and there should be some decent vin jaune, though not under the Château-Chalon AOC. For the rest of the wine styles, there is much variation, with only those who made a severe selection making potentially elegant and balanced Chardonnays and Savagnins. Savoie – A difficult year for many, with some mildew and intermittent hailstorms in places reducing quantities. It was cool at the start of September. Better producers who carried out careful selection at the vine have produced reasonable wines across the board, but generally a mediumquality vintage for all varieties and especially difficult for reds.
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2000 Vintage rating: 79 (Jura: 78, Savoie:81) Jura – A rather cool summer gave, in the end, a good-quality vintage overall, with attractive fruit characteristics, reasonable structure, but some lack of concentration, often due to high yields. Enjoy these wines before the 1999s. Savoie – A good year overall with good yields, too. There was concentrated Bergeron and Altesse, but a lack of weight and structure in Mondeuse has resulted in quick-maturing reds.
GREATEST WINE PRODUCERS Jura 1 Domaine André et Mireille Tissot 2 Domaine Labet Père et Fils 3 Domaine Rolet Père et Fils 4 Domaine Berthet-Bondet 5 Domaine Jacques Puffeney 6 Domaine Jacques Tissot 7 Domaine Baud Père et Fils Savoie
1999 Vintage rating: 84 (Jura: 87, Savoie:78) Jura – An extremely sunny year gave the highest sugar levels ever seen in most varieties, great fruit concentration, and good yields, too. There were excellent overall results, especially for Chardonnay. It may lack the high acidity for the real long-term ageing. Savoie – There was some variation, but overall a good year with both Roussette and Mondeuse capable of ageing well.
1998
1 Domaine Prieuré Saint-Christophe 2 Domaine Louis Magnin 3 Domaine Dupasquier
FASTEST-IMPROVING PRODUCERS Jura 1 Frédéric Lornet 2 Domaine de la Pinte Savoie 1 Jean-Pierre & Jean-François Quenard 2 Jean-Pierre & Philippe Grisard 3 Pascal et Annick Quenard
Vintage rating: 77 (Jura: 79, Savoie: 75) Jura – Though this year was spoiled by rain in September, most producers were able to harvest a reasonable, healthy crop. Somewhat light, but wellbalanced wines overall. Savoie – Difficult spring and summer weather conditions gave relatively light, early-drinking wines, although it is an overall decent vintage.
1997 Vintage rating: 83 (Jura: 81, Savoie: 85)
NEW UP-ANDCOMING PRODUCERS Jura 1 Domaine de la Renardière 2 Domaine Ganevat 3 Domaine de la Tournelle 4 Domaine Ligier Père et Fils Savoie 1 Domaine St-Germain
Jura – This was a year with good ripeness levels, but somewhat low acidity levels. The vins jaunes that will be released in 2004 should be of reasonable, rounded quality, perhaps maturing faster than some years.
BEST-VALUE PRODUCERS
Savoie – A sunny year that gave very good, rich wines. It was especially successful for Mondeuse, and good structure for Roussette de Savoie, the best of which are lasting well.
Jura 1 Domaine Rolet Père et Fils 2 Château Béthanie, Fruitière Vinicole d’Arbois 3 Daniel Dugois
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Savoie 1 Domaine Dupasquier 2 Edmond Jacquin et Fils 3 André & Michel Quenard 4 Domaine de l’Idylle 5 Jean Perrier et Fils
(Sélection Gilbert Perrier range) 6 Domaine de Rocailles 7 Eugène Carrel et Fils
GREATEST-QUALITY WINES According to Jean Macle, vin jaune needs 10 years in bottle (16+ years from the vintage) before reaching perfection, so the Château-Chalons and vins jaunes selected do need time.The Chardonnays can be drunk from now.Tissot’s Les Bruyères has more oak than the others.The Savoie wines can be approached now, but will also age well for several years. Jura 1 Château-Chalon 1995 Jean Macle (€27) 2 Château-Chalon 1996 Domaine Berthet-Bondet (€28) 3 Côtes du Jura Chardonnay Les Varrons 2000 Domaine Labet Père et Fils (€11) 4 Arbois Chardonnay Les Bruyères 2000 Domaine André et Mireille Tissot (€12.20) 5 Arbois Vin Jaune 1994 Domaine Jacques Puffeney (€27) 6 Côtes du Jura Chardonnay Fleur de Marne, La Bardette 1998 Domaine Labet Père et Fils (€10.70) Savoie 1 Roussette de Savoie 2000 Domaine Prieuré Saint-Christophe (€13) 2 Vin de Savoie Mondeuse d’Arbin Vieilles Vignes 2000 Domaine Louis Magnin (€10)
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3 Vin de Savoie Chignin
Bergeron Vielles Vignes 2001 Jean-Pierre & Jean-François Quenard (€8) 4 Vin de Savoie Mondeuse Tradition 2001 Domaine Prieuré Saint-Christophe (€13)
BEST BARGAINS The Jura selections are enjoyable now. From Savoie, the Apremont, Abymes, and Cruet should be drunk early.The rest will repay some ageing. Jura 1 Arbois Chardonnay 2000 Domaine Rolet Père et Fils (€7) 2 Arbois Chardonnay Vieilles Vignes 2000 Fruitière Vinicole d’Arbois (€7) 3 Crémant du Jura Brut Prestige Grand Frères (€6.60) Savoie 1 Roussette de Savoie Marestel
2000 Domaine Dupasquier (€6.80) 2 Roussette de Savoie 2001 Edmond Jacquin et Fils (€4.70) 3 Vin de Savoie Chignin Bergeron Les Terrasses 2001 André & Michel Quenard (€7.80) 4 Vin de Savoie Cruet Vieilles Vignes 2001 Domaine de l’Idylle (€4.50) 5 Mondeuse d’Arbin, Graine de Terroir, Selection Gilbert Perrier 2001 Jean Perrier et Fils (€6.60) 6 Vin de Savoie Apremont Prestiges de Rocaille 2002 Pierre Boniface (€5) 7 Vin de Savoie Abymes 2002 Château de la Violette (€3.40)
MOST EXCITING OR UNUSUAL FINDS Jura 1 Spirale Passerillé sur Paille 1998 Domaine André et Mireille Tissot (€24 per half-bottle) Technically a partially fermented must with just 8.5 per cent alcohol, but 300 grams of residual sugar per litre. Made as a vin de paille from Savagnin, Chardonnay, and Poulsard grapes, dried unusually on real straw in wooden boxes, this wine does not have the level of alcohol required by the appellation laws for vin de paille. 2 Arbois Naturé 1999 Frédéric Lornet (€8.50) Savagnin from a very ripe year, aged on lees in large wooden foudres for 18 months, kept meticulously topped up. Naturé is the old Jura name for Savagnin. 3 Arbois-Pupillin Vendange Oublié 2001 Domaine de la Renardière (€8.50) This is two thirds Chardonnay, one third Savagnin, harvested late and partly vinified in barrel, with a little new oak and then aged with the barrels fully topped up. 4 Arbois Trousseau Cuvée Grevillière 1999 Daniel Dugois (€8) From a year with plenty of sunshine, this is one of the few traditional Jura reds tasted this year that shows true ripeness. A real pleasure to drink. 5 Arbois Savagnin Naturé 2000 Domaine Jacques Tissot (€10.40) Another Savagnin made in a fresh, non-oxidative style. 6 Arbois Savagnin Cuvée S 1999 Domaine de la Pinte (€25) Probably the only Jura Savagnin that has been vinified and matured in 100 per cent new
oak barrels, fully topped up. Made as top-level white Burgundy might be. 7 Côtes du Jura Pinot Noir Cuvée Julien Ganevat 2001 Domaine Ganevat (€8.50) JeanFrançois Ganevat demonstrates with this wine that, even from the difficult 2001, it is possible to make an elegant, but structured, Pinot with a Burgundian character of the best sort. 8 Arbois Savagnin Fleur de Savagnin 2000 Domaine de la Tournelle (€10) Pascal Clairet does not enjoy making traditional oxidized Savagnin as much as this fresh style, which has had almost two years in barrel, topped up. Savoie 1 Vin de Savoie Le Bergeron
d’Elisa 2000 Jean-Pierre & JeanFrançois Quenard (€16 per halfbottle) The Bergeron, alias Roussane, can achieve great ripeness on the slopes of Chignin in good years. Here the grapes have been left to ripen late to give a vendange tardive style. 2 Vin de Savoie Persan 2001 Jean-Pierre et Philippe Grisard (€7.50) From the rare red-grape variety Persan, the structure and fruit of this wine, from very young vines in a difficult vintage, shows why there is such a buzz of excitement about its revival.
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