The Quénard family has been growing vines in Chignin since 1644, when Louis XIV was still a toddler. Their estate sits next to the ruins of Château de Chignin's ancient towers, on limestone-clay slopes that have been producing wine since Roman times. But it wasn't until Jean-François took over from his father in 1987 that things got really interesting.

Jean-François had studied in Dijon, then traveled to Bordeaux and California to expand his horizons. But the encounter in the 80s that changed everything was with Jules Chauvet, the legendary scientist-vigneron who founded the natural wine movement before anyone called it that. Jean-François describes himself as Chauvet's “apprentice,” learning from the master who proved that wine could be made with minimal intervention and maximum expression.

Today, the estate spans 19 hectares of hillside vineyards so steep that 90% of the work must be done by hand. They're converting to full organic certification, but they've always farmed this way—tilling soils, planting fruit trees for biodiversity, treating the land with what they call a “spiritual dimension.” Indigenous yeasts only. Minimal sulfur. Nothing comes between you and the mountain.

The "Anne-Sophie" cuvée showcases Altesse at its most expressive. This indigenous Savoie grape produces wines with an almost ethereal quality—refreshing acidity paired with this distinctive Alpine herb character that's impossible to find anywhere else. The 25-year-old vines grow on clay-limestone soils, and the wine ages 24 months in 600-liter demi-muids, gaining texture without losing that mountain freshness.

WHY YOU'LL LOVE IT

• Alpine Majesty: Altesse from these mountain slopes has a character you can't fake—like someone distilled the essence of mountain meadows. A hint of wintergreen, wild Chartreuse herbs, that crystalline purity. You can’t get this anywhere else in the world but the Alps.
  

• Natural Wine Royalty: When your mentor is Jules Chauvet—the godfather of natural wine, you make wine as pure as it gets: organic farming, indigenous yeasts, and minimal sulfur to maximize terroir expression.
  

• Historic First: After 376 years of fathers passing to sons, Anne-Sophie represents the future. Her name on this bottle isn't just sentiment—she's bringing fresh perspectives from her global wine education while respecting centuries of tradition.

• Rarer Than Rare: A handful of West Coast natural wine bars. That's it. That's the entire US distribution outside this offer. When these cases are gone, you will not be able to source this wine without buying it in France.

HOW TO SERVE IT

• Serve well-chilled at 45-48°F. The aromatics bloom as it warms slightly, revealing layers of white flowers and that distinctive Alpine herb character.
  

• Drink now through 2028. While it's singing today, Altesse has surprising aging potential, developing honey and nut notes without losing that cool mountain breeze.

• Brilliant as an aperitif, but don't stop there. The texture from those 24 months in oak makes it perfect with grilled branzino, cheeses like Reblochon, or for the true mountaineers, a fondue, bien sur!
  

• At $28 for a wine you literally cannot find anywhere else, made by natural wine royalty in the French Alps, this is the definition of insider wine. Those few cases won't last long once word gets out.