The hirsute yeti on today’s wine label shares something in common with the fascinating and effortlessly “gluggable” reds from the French Alps: they’re nearly impossible to find if you’re walking the beaten path. And without our constant off-piste exploring, today’s joyous blend of Gamay, Mondeuse, and Pinot Noir from the remote heart of Savoie’s alpine country would have remained out of sight, out of mind. Even still, it’s an unusual sighting to catch a wine as fine and invigorating as today’s “Croire au Yeti” right here in the United States.

All three varieties—among our favorites of the moment—come from organically grown vineyards belonging to Guillaume Lavie and Maxime Dancoine's rich network of Savoyard winemakers. Their methods are natural, their approach creative, and the final wine is a true feast for the senses. It bursts with fresh raspberry juice, mountain herbs, and that ringing acidity I’ve come to expect from Savoie. Every sip is richly textured and stuffed with personality, as at home on the slopes as it is in your backyard with a juicy, charred burger. Based on the feedback we’ve received over the years, you swoon for Cru Beaujolais, Pinot Noir from the Jura, and pure Mondeuse from Savoie as much as we do—today, you can have the distinct and delicious qualities of all three in one!

Wines from Savoie are famously playful and alive, fine-tuned by altitude and the pure, alpine air and water that feeds these organically grown vines. Considering only 30% of grapes grown in Savoie are red, today’s blend of three varieties piqued our team’s curiosity right away. Mondeuse in particular is known as, “the variety that ripens in the snow;” its chiseled tannins and brisk acidity bolster the floral, juicy quality of both the Pinot and Gamay. Despite their elevation, the vines enjoy a surprisingly warm microclimate thanks to southern sun exposure and the moderating effects of turquoise Alpine lakes. It’s not unusual to find fruit trees surrounding the vineyards of Savoie—cold winters and warm, almost Mediterranean summers pull extraordinary flavor from apricots, almonds, and wine grapes alike. 

Both Maxime and Guillaume farm tiny biodynamic vineyards of one to one-and-a-half hectares. Each has their own winemaking projects, Guillaume at Domaine Les Vins de Lavie and Maxime with Domaine de l'Aitonnement. The two met just before the 2016 vintage and creative sparks began to fly. They dreamt of creating natural wines from exceptional vineyards at a price point their friends and family could enjoy with abandon. Des Vins D’Envie (“The Wines of Desire”) are appropriately spirited, playful, and totally unbound by convention. I interpret the little yeti on today’s label as representing a dream, a myth, something to chase after with fervor just as Maxime and Guillaume chase a new way of bringing Savoie to the world. And once you taste the wines, I can guarantee you’ll be chasing, too.

For the ‘Croire au Yeti’, Guillaume and Maxime vinify their grapes as naturally as possible: hand-harvest, hand-sorting, and indigenous yeast fermentations. Gamay represents 50% of the final blend, Mondeuse 30%, and Pinot Noir 20%. After a two-and-a-half week of maceration, the wines are assembled for aging—half in oak barrels and half in oak vats for a total of six months. Use of sulfur is negligible, and yet the resulting wine radiates purity and typicity. To smell and taste flawless (literally and metaphorically) natural wine is always a treat. The ‘Yeti’ is exuberantly aromatic with a high-toned and perfectly focused bouquet of muddled raspberries, fresh rose petals, and wet gravel. After just a few minutes in the glass, the initial crunchiness of fine tannins becomes soft and tart, further enhancing its deeply refreshing, thirst-quenching abilities. The medium body palate is well stuffed with glossy fruits like tart cherries, cranberries, and red currants, and every sip is fresh, tight, and delineated with seams of marblesque minerality for maximum impact on the palate. There are endless possibilities for pairing, but a robust, simple dish like meatloaf will go the distance and then some.