L'Octavin Cigogne 2021

Origin: Jura, France
Grapes: 50% Pinot Gris, 50% Gewurztraminer

An aromatic still Orange wine. Alice personally drives to the vineyard from the the Humbrecht family in Alsace, where the grapes are picked, before heading back to Arbois to begin the creating the wine. Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer in a 50/50 blend, the grapes are fermented as whole bunches for 10 days before being pressed off to cuve for nearly a year. The nose is thick with tropical fruit, rose and spice, while the palate offers a little tannin and a bitterness that complements this exuberance beautifully.

After training in Bordeaux and Burgundy, Alice Bouvot travelled the world and then finally settled in her native Jura. In 2004, her and partner Charles Dagan began to farm 2ha of land in Arbois and the surrounding hills, working from a small cellar in the village. Now the domaine consists of 5ha, including some of the best lieu-dits in the district.

Her practices are strictly biodynamic and a meticulous attitude to pruning and vine health helps to maintain the incredible biodiversity of each plot. Her winemaking style is very much dynamic and there is no recipe for any one cuvée each year. She talks emphatically about the importance of "acidity and coolness" in her wines and how wines from the Jura are fortunate to have these sorts of inherent characters, especially Poulsard. Vinification is done in the most natural way possible, as she says, vinifying in any other way is to "alter the identity of the wine".