As I’ve said before, you’ll never look at a wine the same again once you’ve visited the place where it is made. My friend who imports today’s delicious Côtes du Jura Pinot Noir feels the same. No matter how exhausted he gets while out pounding French pavement in search of these gems, he tells me, “when I walk into a vineyard like Champ Divin, with the bees buzzing and the sun shining, there’s a vibration that sets me straight and I perk right up.” I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had the same experience—vineyards that are alive have palpable energy that resonates with your tastebuds.
It’s all thanks to husband-wife duo Fabrice and Valerie Closset-Gaziaux, who founded Champ Divin in 2008. Today, they are leading the way in the Jura with organic and biodynamic viticulture practices. But fate was not on their side in the 2016 and 2017 vintages, when extreme weather destroyed 80 percent of their crop in both years, including a block of newly planted Pinot Noir vines. This 2018 vintage is the first they’ve bottled since 2015, and I’m beyond thrilled to have a small allocation of it to offer today. If you love Oregon Pinot you’ll love this: It combines New World clarity and precision with Old World savor and minerality, layered with medium-soft tannins and bright acidity. There’s a warming trend in France, and in the Jura, bright sunshine is helping usher in wines reminiscent of great Burgundy at much lower prices. Champ Divin’s delectable 18’ Pinot Noir exemplifies exactly why you should be paying attention.
If you hop into a car in downtown Beaune, the commercial epicenter of Burgundy, you’ll reach the heart of the Jura in about an hour. This under-explored region has a resolutely antique feel, as if you’ve traveled 150 years back in time; tiny towns come and go in an instant as you drive over slow, rolling foothills in the shadow of the snow-capped French Alps. But in the Jura, where vines are rooted in Jurassic-era limestone soils, cellars are cleaning up their act, and Pinot Noir and Chardonnay vines are maturing and blossoming into exciting wines which is causing a paradigm shift in an area historically known for oxidative vin jaune (“yellow wine”) made from the Savagnin grape.
Exceptional terroir, aided by longer days of sunshine and brilliant winemaking, come profoundly together at the bucolic Champ Divin estate, perched on the Jura’s “premier plateau.” The winery name translates to “Divine Estate,” and it’s exactly that: seven hectares of naturally farmed Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Savagnin vines planted in limestone-rich terroir, not dissimilar to Burgundy’s.
Agronomy and earth science backgrounds, as well as their natural farming experiences in Africa and the Loire Valley, drove Fabrice and Valerie toward sustainable farming practices at home. The result of their labors are wines of incredible purity that teem with Alpine life and energy. The husband-wife team farm biodynamically (Demeter Certified), emphasizing patience and observance to understand the natural balance of their sites.
When some producers hit their stride, the proof is in the bottle. When we tasted this wine with our SommSelect team, everyone was blown away. Entirely de-stemmed, fermented in steel, aged in large, neutral demi-muid barrels, and bottled with minimal sulfur addition, this 2018 reveals polished, beautifully clean, highly perfumed fruit. The aromas are driven by ripe, picked wild berries like blackberry, black raspberry, and brambly red fruit with purple florals. On the palate, the tannins are as soft and as smooth as it gets. Tasting it blind, I would be in a warm vintage in Burgundy—it has a lot of polish supported by refreshing acidity. It’s a firm wine with 3-5 years of positive evolution ahead of it—if not longer—but it’s so well-balanced, regal, and delicious right now I may not be able to wait. Serve a touch chilled, closer to cellar temperature at 55-60 degrees. A brief decant is recommended. Pair with oxygen and sunshine on an early summer evening, or get more serious and prepare a classic French cassoulet and invite some friends. Enjoy!
