Petite Nature

Pauline Maziou is a true hands-on, small-scale winemaker doing things her own way. Known to friends as Paulette, she started her Petite Nature project in 2019 with just half a hectare of vines near Quintenas, in the northern Ardèche. Having worked alongside Jean Delobre of La Ferme des Sept Lunes and the influential Daniel Sage, she has learned from two important names in the Northern Rhône natural wine scene, while developing a style that is unmistakably her own.

Today, Pauline farms her vines organically, with biodynamic treatments, and experiments with agroforestry on a small parcel behind her home. Her wines are made in a tiny cellar beneath the house, with a decidedly hands-off approach: spontaneous fermentation, no filtration and no additions. Working on such a small scale means patience is everything, with each wine given the time it needs to find its feet before bottling.

The results are vibrant, elegant and beautifully expressive. Her reds, in particular, have that alluring Northern Rhône character, with lifted aromatics, delicate perfume and a freshness shaped by the Ardèche’s warm days and cooler nights. It’s little wonder Petite Nature has developed a devoted following among those in the know. Small production, serious craft, and wines that speak for themselves.