When we think of François’ wines, one word immediately comes to mind: Electric. An oft-used (perhaps over-used) descriptor, but no more aptly used than here. These wines display characteristic vibrancy and verve, like the vibrating note of a taut guitar string. Yet, each cuvée remains unique and distinctive, reflective of François’ raison d’être: to understand the phenomenal terroirs on which he works, and to translate that into wines that have an undeniable sense of place.

François grew up in Burgundy, where his father worked as a micro-biologist for the Hospices de Beaune. As a child, he would often spend time with his grandfather in the Jura, falling in love with a small parcel of vines that his family owned and farmed. With the winemaking spark well and truly ignited in him, François went off to earn his oenology degree, squeezed in a biology degree, then proceeded to work down south, taking on apprenticeships in the Rhone and Languedoc regions. In 2007, he returned home to his Jurassian roots to take over the family vineyards and start his own estate.

François’ winemaking style combines the best of science, tradition and keen intuition: from his father comes a background in the science behind winemaking; and from his great-grandfather (also a winemaker) comes traditional winemaking lore and know-how, passed down through the generations.

François' vineyards, on the slopes below the majestic outcrop of Château-Chalon (photo: Vin & Natur)

We had the incredible opportunity a few years back to visit François’ winery in the tiny village of Nevy-sur-Seille, tucked away in the Vallée des Reculées (‘valley of the isolated’) – a fitting place for this enigmatic winemaker. The simple, uncomplicated setup belied the sheer number and quality of his cuvées. In retrospect, his winery is a bit like François himself: unpretentious and reserved, content to let the wines do the talking. And talk they did. Despite us being a bit worse for wear after weeks of tastings, bottle after bottle amazed us with their remarkable tension and electric energy. Just wow.

François farms almost two dozen small parcels (all of which are a hectare or smaller) in and around Château-Chalon, on soils abundant in clay, marl and limestone. While the famed Château-Chalon appellation is regarded as the unofficial grand cru for the renowned vin jaune – an intense, oxidative sherry-like wine aged under flor – François has chosen to focus mainly on non-oxidative ouillé (topped up, or in layman’s terms, ‘regular style’) wines.

While vin jaune is undeniably delicious, that style of wine arguably takes on more character from the winemaking process than from specificity of terroir. François, however, is determined to make wine that brings forth the most faithful expression possible of its place of origin – and he believes that the ouillé style will allow him to stay most true to his illustrious terroirs. But by topping up his barrels, François loses the ability to label those wines with the hallowed Château-Chalon appellation, and they are instead classified as ‘simply’ Côtes du Jura. It’s a price he’s willing to pay.

François in his cellar (photo: Vin & Natur)

His dedication to exploring and expressing his appellation’s micro-terroirs has led him to adopt an approach similar to that of Stephane Tissot in Arbois: he vinifies by climat (vinifying each small parcel separately; more common in Burgundy and rarely seen in Jura) to create a dizzying number of cuvées that bear site-specific identity and character. From where we stand, François’ wines definitively prove that Château-Chalon can produce just as nuanced and soulful ouillé wines as the more well-known Arbois and Pupillin appellations.

As with many of the best wines, much of the work is done in the vineyard, and François has slowly converted all of his parcels to organic farming. His vines are extremely low-yielding, and all grapes are hand-harvested.

Winemaking is mostly straightforward: the wines are vinified in barrels (228-litre pièces bourguignonne and demi-muids) that are 3 to 4 years old. All undergo malolactic fermentation, are aged on fine lees, and are neither fined nor filtered; the oxidative cuvées see no sulphur. The wines mature in a cool, humid cellar, ideal for achieving the optimal level of finesse and concentration.

But importantly, for all of his ouillé cuvées, François does age the wine sous voile (under flor) for a short period of time, before they’re topped up and aged in the ouillé way until bottling. This is because he wants to maintain the typicity and character of Jura (rather than making Burgundy look-alikes), while retaining a sense of freshness in the wines. It’s not a technique we often see, but the results – where the brief time under flor adds depth and complexity, yet allows the wine to retain the vivaciousness of the ouillé style – are absolutely spectacular.

The ouillé wines are more fruity and floral and tend to dried fruits redolent of orange and apricot, fine acidity then more vegetal notes of fennel and celery, citron and (lime)stone juice. The voile wines are slightly reductive, a touch of cheese and then the classic aromas of fenugreek, cumin, ginger, menthol and then amazing acidity. — Doug Wregg, Les Caves de Pyrene

In our inaugural allocation from François, we’re thrilled to have received a great selection of his wines, which we feel represent well the different styles across all of his cuvées. These wines are powerful yet precise, with every cuvée exhibiting remarkable energy, purity and tension: all hallmarks of great Jura. As always, quantities are extremely limited. We would highly recommend you don’t miss out – that goes especially for all you Jura lovers out there!

This offer is valid until 26 January 2022. Some wines have restrictive supplies, so please understand that we may have to allocate them in order to ensure as equitable a distribution as possible. Orders will be processed subject to availability and final written confirmation. Full payment is required no later than 7 days after confirmation invoice is sent in order to confirm the purchase. All terms and conditions apply.