I have fond memories of walking into Paris’s Racines (when Pierre Jancou reigned) and frequently seeing the tousled-headed, boxer-visaged Christian Venier sitting at the bar. Whatever he brought with him... read more →
While there are plenty of cartoonish labels out there that signal their naturalness, here’s one that refuses to fly the flag. Yet it's a wine worthy of any cab franc... read more →
From one of natural wine’s OGs, Theirry Puzelat, comes a brilliant example of a workhorse sauvignon blanc. He has been buying grapes for this cuvée for years from a nearby... read more →
Nicolas Gonnin in Paris makes straightforward but spot-on Chinons. This former train conductor had his first vintage in 2021 and I have put him on my “one-to-watch” list. I love... read more →
“I realized that I would never use carbonic maceration on my top cuvées, so why am I doing this on the Ad Libitum?” Thus spake Damien to me in the... read more →
When I tasted Xavier Weisskopf’s line up at the Bio show, I thought, where have these been? Apparently on the west coast! There they get to drink the gorgeous côt.... read more →
This Touche is going to touch a lot of chenin freaks. The finish on this is fueled by lemon, apple and mineral like a hammer. Boing! Beautiful, edgy at 12%... read more →
Why don’t the Coulaine wines get better representation on the shelves? The 2011 vintage was generous to Etienne and Pascale and this is a gorgeous expression of grapes grown in... read more →
If you don’t know the wines from Coralie and Damien Delecheneau in the AOCs of Touraine Amboise & Montlouis, get to know them now, before everyone else discovers them. They... read more →
Last stop for rosé. This one is pure fun with that pale color phony Provençal rosés try to emulate. It is a little ripe, a little low on the acid... read more →