Ardèche
Ardèche
Le Raisin et l’Ange 2019 Nedjma Blanc
French White
Sauvignon Blanc, Grenache Blanc and Chardonnay form this Ardèche white. One third of the fruit remains as whole clusters on skins for ten days in stainless steel, while the other two thirds are directly pressed. It is made without added sulphur. The cuvée’s name means “star” in Arabic, a deliberate reference chosen by the producer in response to exclusionary attitudes toward immigrants in Europe.
Andréa Calek 2018 Blonde
French White
This Vin de France white is made entirely from Chardonnay. The grapes are pressed directly and begin spontaneous fermentation with native yeasts, with no sulphur added. Alcohol is 12.5%. Andréa Calek works in Valvignières, a dry village in Ardèche, after experience with Dominique Hauvette and Gérald Oustric. His approach combines disciplined farming with low-intervention cellar work, and he makes the wines himself.
Thibaud Capellaro 2021 Ombre & Lumière
French Red
Grenache, Syrah and Viognier are vinified separately, using a mix of carbonic fermentation, skin contact and direct pressing. The wine spends nine months in barrels and older demi-muids, with no fining, filtration or added sulphur. Fruit comes from vineyards on granite and clay-limestone soils in the Rhône and Ardèche. The vineyards are farmed organically and biodynamically without certification, and alcohol is thirteen percent by volume.
Vincent Ruiz 2022 Yseult Mon Amour Syrah
French Red
Bright red plum and cherry appear with crushed pepper and violet. The tannins are delicate. Syrah comes from limestone and clay soils, with vines averaging sixty years old. Whole bunches macerate for twenty-one days without punching down or pumping over before vertical pressing. The wine ages on its lees for eight months and carries twelve percent alcohol. Farming is organic.
Vincent Ruiz 2022 Prima Materia Grenache
French Red
Ripe redcurrant, tangerine, dried herbs, earth, citrus, red fruit and a touch of bitterness form the profile. The wine has good concentration. Grenache comes from Ardèche and carries twelve percent alcohol. Hand-harvested fruit undergoes whole-bunch fermentation and about fourteen days of maceration in stainless steel with indigenous yeast, followed by eight months in the same vessel. It is unfined and unfiltered.
Le Raisin & l’Ange 2023 Hommage à Robert
French Red
Ripe red fruit opens warmly, followed by dark plum, dried herbs and a subtle peppery note. Whole-cluster carbonic maceration brings lift to this generous, rounded red, while stainless-steel ageing keeps the finish direct and fruit-led. Serve slightly cool with roast pork, grilled vegetables, lentils or a rustic mushroom dish.