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“Making good wine is a bit like telling a good joke: it takes time, patience, and above all not to overdo it!”
We were first surprised to be recognized for Jacquère, but we are very happy. We made it in the purest tradition, without malolactic fermentation, to keep its sparkle and freshness. It is a "thirst-quenching" wine, and that is not a derogatory term! It only has 11° alcohol, like the wines my father Francis made. Its low alcohol content is now sought after. Our Jongieux Blanc is very light, unlike our Roussettes.
Nothing extraordinary, just a sum of small details! We leaf-strip all our vines, shoot-thin, green harvest, hand pick and sort a lot. We are lucky to have very old vines in one of the most beautiful terroirs of Savoie. It’s the territory that does everything. You recognize a Marestel Roussette by its candied grape notes and honey aromas. It is the glacial moraines resting on crumbly limestone rocks that give it this taste.
Not necessarily. You can be organic and have your vines look like a desert. For us, what counts are living soils, not weeded and full of nitrogen that give wines with honest flavors. I cannot stand wines that "stink." They remind me of my grandfather's wines that smelled like manure. I went to school to learn how to make good wines without off-flavors or greenness. When someone says my Mondeuse is not 'rough' enough, I take it as a compliment. We do everything to get fine and fruity wines. For our Gamays, we use a semi-carbonic maceration like in Beaujolais which brings out the red fruit.
Mainly not to grow, but to keep improving our wines. I am never satisfied with what I do, I always ask myself a thousand questions. At fairs, I taste my neighbors’ wines and question them. The future is Antoine. We form a trio. He helps us make decisions. Jean-Pierre reproaches me for being obsessive about sorting and reminds me that we’re not at Petrus. Anyway, since Antoine joined us, we have earned 3 favorites. It’s no coincidence.