Happy bees
SPARK
Our portfolio knows winemakers from the Jura and Savoie but not the neighbouring Bugey wine region because we had not yet discovered anyone we were excited about. The click with Chloé and Jordan of Les Tailleurs Cueilleurs was immediate. Chloé is from Nîmes, Jordan from Alsace. In 2018, Chloé went grape-picking with a friend at no other than Bruno Schueller, where she met Jordan. The spark strikes, and travelling around Italy and working in the vineyards in Friuli is a fact. The idea for their wine estate in France is also born.
HAPPINESS
Luck smiles on them because just before the 2020 harvest, they both immediately fall for a house for sale in Bugey, which still needs some work. They throw themselves entirely into the job and are disappointed when the sellers drop out at the last minute. However, man only shows his true nature when proven. When you think nothing more will happen, it just happens. Determined, they draw the correct conclusion and buy a building in Saint-Jean-Le-Vieux in the north of Bugey, which they restore with passion and love, with Jordan's father as both architect and seasoned carpenter holding the hammer.
8 CUVEES
Their initial setback made buying extremely suitable parcels for biodynamic viticulture and vinification per parcel possible. The fact that locals were willing to sell vines is a bonus. Buyers there are rare because the slopes are too steep and challenging to cultivate. Attached to a solid idea to optimise the energy between vine and vineyard, their first vintage will be an instant success, but reflection is essential for mission and strategy. Eight cuvées for a first vintage is not nothing. The red wines sound like Novêra, A l'abada, Grenalâ, Rita & Rova, and Kovè—the white wines like Nua and Lyëna. Sarvazo has the famous Cerdon bubbles but is very different and much less sweet.
ENGLISH GRAFTING
The plots are close to the cellar and are in three different areas. In Varey, young vines between 20 and 30 years old on moderate slopes and clay-limestone soil are rural and surrounded by orchards and sheep. Lots of sunshine means the earliest harvest here. Mainly planted with Gamay but also with Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Mondeuse. The second plot is in Poncieux (Haut Bugey), a ten-minute drive from the cellar. Wilder and austere with thin valleys and steep slopes and almost entirely landlocked with vines from 40 to 80 and even 110 years old on marl-limestone of various origins and planted with a massive selection of Gamay. The third plot stands out above Dalivoy, with meadows and forests like those in the Alpine region, marl-limestone planted with 40-year-old Chardonnay, and a selection of Savagnin this year. The quality of the planting material is essential to obtain perennial vines. Therefore, Chloé and Jordan buy their plants from reputable growers who grow plants according to the principles of biodynamics and make their mass selection. They also apply English grafting and guarantee quality work.
BALANCE
Chloé and Jordan's approach is to find balance in everything. Physiological pruning is a considerable job but necessary to ensure the durability of plants that have undergone a lot of mutilation and excessive pruning. No more pruning wounds on wood older than two years, and the plant's elongation must be accepted and controlled to allow it to build reserves and ultimately make it more resilient and resistant. Tailleurs Cueilleurs (cutting-picking) indicate their importance to this pruning, which balances moderate yield and longer life. Based on the principle of non-action and wild farming, trees and plants find their place as companions to the vine so that the wines can absorb this energy. For beautiful grapes and good wine, the vine must suffer. For Chloé and Jordan, it is high time this changed. The well-being of the plant and the entire ecosystem must no longer be seen as a stepchild but must rethought together with climate protection.
MONDAY
Everything is a matter of guiding plants and soil without traumatising following the lunar calendar enthusiastically, producing horn manure and gravel and respecting cosmic rhythms. Biodiversity is essential, as are fruit trees, shrubs, land trees, perches for birds of prey, and nesting boxes for birds and bats. Allowing the grass to grow naturally seals the soil and creates a diversity of insects, fungi, bacteria, and pleased bees. As summers get hotter, the grass rolls once the seed has hardened. It prevents regrowth after mowing but also allows spontaneous renewal of weeds. Spreading organic material such as leaves or grass clippings protects the freshness and moisture of the soil while providing nutrition. The use of machinery is limited to a track weighing between 450 and 700 kg.
UV-STOK
In the high season, pruning and tying up is where the branches are braided on the wire or between them to get maximum leaf area. No operations that oxidise or stress the plant. The dose of sulphur and copper is minimal thanks to herbal teas of nettle, willow, horsetail, yarrow and roadside thorn that stimulate the plant's natural defences and limit fungal spores. Working without additives and sulphites requires optimum cellar hygiene. The disinfected and steamed barrels passed through the UV stick for 15 minutes before filling. It is possible to work without sulphur pits, which reduces the risk of contamination, especially from Brettanomyces. The wines are then aged in demi-muids and determined in their own time. Due to the use of indigenous yeasts and temperature differences, fermentations can be slow. There is no filtering, and a dispenser with two spouts is used, significantly avoiding the tumultuous air supply. Despite the known drawbacks, Chloé and Jordan deliberately chose the (best) cork to ensure optimal wine preservation. Their sparkling wines are corked with an agglomerated cork glued to a cork disc that directly interacts with the wine and then manually stapled.
LABELS
The beautiful labels come from the hand of Marseille-based visual artist Anthony Duchêne. His recent works are oriented not only towards the plant but also the mineral and the wine landscape. His work's inspiration, sensitivity to ecology and biodiversity, and finesse have entirely convinced Chloé and Jordan, and they are happy to collaborate for all labels. The names of the cuvées are taken from the local dialect and evoke anecdotes related to the life of the plots. For instance, Kovè (crow) and Nua (nut) refer to the winged inhabitants of these two plots.
We are naturally beaming from ear to ear that we can add Chloé and Jordan's wines to our collection. Beautiful wines that make everyone happy. From happy bees.
