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The Jura is revamping its Route du Vin for an official relaunch in 2007. A new brochurelisting hotels, restaurants, and tourist sites, aswell as producers in the area, was producedfor summer 2006. Growing in popularity isthe biennial Fête de Ploussard in Pupillin(2006), which alternates with the Fête deTrousseau in Montigny les Arsures (2007)over the third weekend in August. In 2005,the Fête de Trousseau included a gastronomic

lunch prepared by top local chefs to match a series of Trousseau wines –it was sold out on both days. A new tourist initiative is a ‘picnic with the vigneron’ event, held for the first time in June 2006. The participatingvignerons will supply picnicking facilities and, of course, samples of theirwine. Jazz bands and other entertainments are promised, too.

In Savoie, there is a less cohesive initiative, but the importance oftourism is recognized as crucial. They, too, have a Route du Vin for themain vineyard areas, but the Comité Interprofessionnel recognizes a needto forge closer links with restaurants and hotels, of which few are actuallyin the vineyard areas. One noble exception is the Auberge les Morainières,a small restaurant in the heart of the Jongieux region on the slope of the

WINK LORCH is a wine writer and educator with a passion for the mountainsand a chalet in the Haut-Savoie. She is a past chairman of the Association ofWine Educators and has contributed to several books, including Time-Life’s The Wine Guide, The Global Wine Encyclopedia, and Le Cordon Bleu’s Wine Essentials.Wink particularly enjoys enthusing about wines from vineyards in sight ofsnowcapped mountains, whether the Andes, the Alps, or the Jura. She divides her time between London and the French Alps.

Jura & SavoieFor the tiny wine regions of Jura and Savoie,developing links with tourism, particularly with localrestaurants, is deemed the most important defenceagainst the growing crisis in the French wine industry.

WINK LORCH

Wink Lorch

64 WINE REPORT 2007 GLOBAL REPORTS

Marestel cru. A tastefully restored building, it is an ideal place to enjoy arange of good Savoie wines, including Marestel, by the glass.

In both Jura and Savoie, the emphasis that local restaurants place ontheir regional wines is a matter for concern. With the exception of the top restaurants, where chefs pride themselves on matching local producewith wines from the area, many more modest restaurants offer a simplelist of appellations and/or grape varieties with no indication of produceror vintage. Often these come from one négociant, because it makes lifeeasier for the restaurateur. Mark-ups on the local wines may be excessive.Louis Magnin of Savoie spotted one of his top wines, which sells at thecellar door for €15, listed at €65 in a restaurant in Megève. On the otherhand, Christophe Menozzi, a top sommelier in the Jura, commented thatvignerons do not make enough effort to communicate with the localsommelier groups, and despite initiatives from the sommeliers invitingvignerons to tastings, few make time to attend.

Local grapes: new studies

Autumn 2005 saw the very basic laboratory at the Syndicat des Vins de Savoie in Chambéry housing no fewer than 60 demijohns bubblingaway, the first micro-vinification exercise of this size from clonal trials ofMondeuse, Altesse, and Jacquère. Roussanne (known as Bergeron inSavoie) and the unusual black Persan grape were also micro-vinified, butthere was insufficient crop to keep the clones separate. Savoie suffersfrom a lack of clonal diversity, which is why the trial was set up. Inparticular, it is hoped to establish the best new clones of Mondeuse andAltesse, since these are most often chosen for new plantings. Growers are planting less of the rather bland Jacquère grape (the most plantedvariety) and the ubiquitous Gamay and Pinot Noir, as demand for themore interesting Mondeuse and Altesse wines increases.

In the Jura, a report published in February 2006 specified the bestterroirs for growing the Trousseau grape (thought to be identical toPortugal’s Bastardo), following a detailed survey by retired geologyprofessor Michel Campy, together with Christian Barnéoud of theChambre d’Agriculture de Franche-Comté. Traditionally, Trousseau hasbeen considered best when grown in the clay-rich gravel outcrops in the northern part of the Arbois appellation around Montigny Les Arsures.A late ripener, it needs a light-textured soil. With increased demand forthe variety, and only around 100 ha planted, the study aimed to test itssuitability elsewhere in the region.

Fifteen plots growing mature Trousseau, situated from the far north tothe far south of the Jura, were examined geologically, and a blind tasting of

Grapevine

• Ovarius, a new decanter designedby Jura physicist Michel Patois andJura sommelier Christophe Menozziof restaurant Le Comtois in Doucier,was launched in 2005. Made fromhand-blown glass and shaped like a wide-based teapot with an erectspout, it is ideal for young wine and vin jaune, which need plenty of aeration in a very short time.A few minutes in the decanter is all it takes, since the shape acts as aparticle accelerator. Stamped on thedecanter is the equation Ec= 1⁄2 mv 2 .

• Crémant du Jura sold in 2005/06 has been granted a specialderogation by the INAO to spendonly nine months (instead of 12) sur lattes. This follows the very small2003 vintage and is the second timethis derogation has been granted inthe past five years. Crémant is one of the most successful AOCs in theregion, but apparently this leewaywon’t be allowed again.

2004 wines from each plot confirmed that the fullest styles of Trousseau areproduced around Montigny. There is plenty of potential for lighter wines inother areas, however, because these are enjoyed by local consumers. Thereport should serve as a blueprint for vignerons across the region who wantto expand their holdings or even plant this local variety for the first time.

Château-Chalon site classified

The AOC Château-Chalon vineyard area was formally recognized inJanuary 2006 by the French ministry for ecology and sustainabledevelopment as a “classified site”. A charter known as the chartre deFontrevaud was signed by local representatives agreeing to protect thelandscape and the wine of Château-Chalon. This step is a precursor to being recognized by UNESCO. Château-Chalon now belongs to theexclusive club of classified historic vineyards, in company that includes St-Emilion, the Douro, and Tokaj.

Dumping row

Dumping of vin jaune by Jura négociants has caused fury among Juraproducers. In March 2005, two local supermarket chains were selling vinjaune for just €11.20 per clavelin (62-cl bottle), compared to a normalprice of €20–30. Vine growers protested to the supermarkets, explainingthat production costs could not be covered at this price and demandingthat the price be raised to a more realistic level of at least €15. Growersmarched into the offending supermarkets, intending to take the bottlesfrom the shelves, but the supermarket had already removed them. Laterthey reappeared at a higher price. In the autumn 2005 wine-fair season,vins jaunes were once again on sale at below €12.

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The Jura is undoubtedly the most complicated wine region in the world interms of its plethora of wine styles. Crémant du Jura and vin jaune are theonly styles where one knows what to expect; the reds, whites, and vins depaille are hugely varied, depending on grape variety and vinification styles.Reading the label or looking at a wine list rarely gives any indication of style.

Most Jura producers hand-sell a significant proportion of their wines at the cellar door or at tasting salons. But how is anyone supposed to choose a Jura wine off the shelf, or from a wine list? I have put thisquestion repeatedly to Alain Baud, president of the Jura Société deViticulteurs. It seems that the Jura vignerons cannot agree on the terms to use on their labels, and back-label explanations remain purelyvoluntary. Baud sees no prospect of change here. He also points out that INAO policy forbids naming grape varieties on the label. Many Juraproducers have been flouting this for years, and Baud hopes for officialauthorization to use varietal labelling.

Each year I taste more and more Jura wines that I believe would exciteinternational palates: Chardonnays to rival burgundy; fresh Savagnins that tingle with lemony acidity and match a range of foods wonderfully;Trousseau and Pinot Noir reds with depth of fruit yet refreshinglylightweight; luscious vin de paille or sweet wines sold under otherdesignations. But what chance is there of anyone outside the regiondiscovering these wines if they are not described properly? They willremain confined to the cellars of certain restaurants and a select group of curious consumers unless the growers (and the INAO) agree to givemore descriptive labels.

Savoie has to raise its game

Savoie, too, has wines that are improving, but once again few people getto know about these for two main reasons. First, the average quality ofcertain wines, in particular from the largest crus, Apremont and Abymes,and from some of the négociants, is too low. These are the wines mostoften drunk by visitors to the French Alps, and one bad experience is likelyto put them off Savoie wines forever. The growers have been encouragedto reduce yields, but this has still not gone far enough. Too many winesare weak and insipid, whereas the best growers demonstrate that verydecent wines can be made. Second, there is a lack of regional promotion,

Opinion:Jura needs a cohesive approach

especially towards keen wine consumers. Growers in the Combede Savoie area have formally complained to the Syndicat des Vinsthat the Comité des Vins de Savoie (CIVS) is not doing enough to promote the region’s wines. The CIVS works with Frenchjournalists to promote the region, but it does not do enough with the public. For the future of the region, promotion must beimproved to justify growers charging the higher prices they needto sustain lower yields and greater work.

Cerdon authenticity under threat

Misuse of the term méthode ancestrale remains a problem forBugey. Bugey Cerdon VDQS is the only quality rosé sparkling wineto be made by the méthode ancestrale, and the region is asking theINAO to restrict the term méthode ancestrale to quality (AOC andVDQS) wines. This would outlaw wines such as the Boisset-ownedPellin Rosé Vin Mousseux Demi-Sec, labelled “MéthodeAncestrale” and made from bought-in Gamay.

Grapevine

• Jean Rijckaert, the négociant andgrower based in the Mâconnais, cansleep soundly at night now that hehas proved his commitment to theJura region by hiring a full-timeassistant based near Arbois tooversee both vineyards andvinification in the Jura.

• The Fruitière Vinicole d’Arbois,the largest wine cooperative in theJura and one of the first in France,celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2006. Formed by 31 vigneronsfollowing the phylloxera crisis, it has 111 members farming about 25 per cent of AOC Arbois. It hasalso announced that it will join forceswith the much smaller Fruitière(cooperative) in Poligny. To celebratethe occasion, 100 bottles of Arboiswines were locked up for 100 yearsin the walls of Château Béthanie, theco-op headquarters.

• From 2007, vin jaune from AOCsArbois, Côtes du Jura, and Etoile islikely to undergo agrément tastingand analytical tests before bottling

after its six years of maturation.This is one of the measures of therewritten AOCs for the region likelyto have been approved by mid-2006.It follows similar measures taken in2004 for AOC Château-Chalon (a vin jaune by definition).

• Vendange Tardive is a designationsought by the Syndicat des Vins deSavoie in their rewritten AOCs.Increasing numbers of Savoievignerons make a late-harvest winefrom Jacquère, Altesse, or Bergeron(Roussanne) but are not allowed touse the term on labels.

• Vins du Bugey have a goodchance of being promoted from theircurrent VDQS status to AOC for the2006 vintage. At the time of writing,the official rubber stamp is beingeagerly awaited, after more than 10 years of battling.The proposalshave already been approved by theregional INAO, and growers are likely to be highly demotivated ifpromotion is not granted by theParis-based INAO.

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Savoie – Extremely dry until the second week of August, but then rainarrived in abundance, and by early September, growers were under pressurefrom disease. But the harvest was saved later in the month with constantfine, sunny weather that dried out the rot. Excess quantity was a problem,but the grapes were generally healthy and sugar levels were extremelyreasonable. Late varieties Altesse, Jacquère, and Mondeuse did best, andthose growers who were selective have produced reasonably concentratedwines. However, overall, this is not an exciting vintage.

2003

Vintage rating: Jura – Red: 86,White: 76;Savoie – Red: 83,White: 81Jura – The harvest was around five weeks earlier than normal, andquantities were down 30 per cent. Dealing with low acidity was a bigchallenge, especially for Savagnin wines destined for vin jaune, which needto withstand nearly seven years of ageing. Other 2003 whites were readyearly, though some producers were still loath to bottle early: this is a veryatypical vintage with some overripe fruit flavours sometimes taking awayany jurassien character. However, reds, for once, are actually red in colourand taste of ripe fruit!Savoie – The hot, dry conditions led to an early harvest of supremelyhealthy grapes that required extremely careful cellar handling, especially of low acidity levels. Low quantities of Chignin Bergeron and Altesse (forRoussette de Savoie) mean that few wines are still available. However, thebest producers made deliciously fruity whites, which still retain some alpinefreshness. Mondeuse can be overtannic despite the high level of fruit.

2002

Vintage rating: Jura – Red: 86,White: 90;Savoie – Red: 79,White: 77Jura – A period of fine weather in autumn gave overall good quality. Nearlyall varieties showed both good natural ripeness and high acidity levels. Thisbodes well for vin jaune in the future. Chardonnays are proving excellent,with good weight and balance. Trousseau reds are good, too.Savoie – Good late September weather saved the harvest, following adifficult August. Mondeuse did well in places, with some good results. Altesseis varied, though some interesting late-harvest versions have been made.

Vintage ReportAdvance report on the latest harvest

2005

Jura – Following two contrasting and extreme vintages, growers wererelieved to have a normal and healthy growing season, albeit fairly dry andhot compared to the average. It was quite an early harvest and weatherremained good throughout the picking period, extended by some of thebest growers to the latter half of October. Crucially, unlike 2003, aciditywas maintained, and this, combined with good concentration and modestyields, promises extremely well for all varieties and styles of wines.Savoie – Unusually, growers had little to complain about in this vintage.True, August was rather cool and wet at times, giving a few diseaseproblems for the usual culprits, Gamay and Pinot Noir, but September andOctober provided glorious, dry, warm, and sunny weather. Perfect pickingconditions allowed patient growers to wait as long as possible to pick the late-ripening Mondeuse grapes. This has ensured better physiologicalripeness than usual, even if (as ever) this variety needs quite heftychaptalization. Most whites from Bergeron (Roussanne) and Altesse grapesdid not need any chaptalization. The wines of all varieties promise well,with good balance of fruit and structure.

Updates on the previous five vintagesRatings for vin jaune and vin de paille are included in the scores for white wines.

2004

Vintage rating: Jura – Red: 80,White: 82;Savoie – Red: 74,White: 78Jura – After a wet summer, September was dry and warm. Crop levels werehigh and selection was crucial to have any chance of making good wines.Much Chardonnay was picked for Crémant, and the grapes were alsosufficiently healthy for drying for vin de paille. Savagnins were picked atgood sugar and acidity levels, crucial for vin jaune. Green-harvesting waspractised by many growers with black varieties, and the resulting Trousseauwines show particularly well from good producers; other black varietieswere less successful.

GLOBAL REPORTS JURA & SAVOIE 7170 WINE REPORT 2007 GLOBAL REPORTS

GREATEST WINEPRODUCERS

Jura1 Domaine André & Mireille Tissot2 Domaine Labet Père & Fils3 Jacques Puffeney4 Jean Rijckaert5 Domaine Jacques Tissot6 Domaine Berthet-Bondet7 Domaine GanevatSavoie1 Domaine Prieuré Saint-Christophe2 Domaine Dupasquier3 André & Michel Quenard

FASTEST-IMPROVINGPRODUCERS

Jura1 Domaine Pignier2 Domaine Ligier Père & Fils3 Domaine de la Renardière

4 Frédéric Lornet5 Domaine de la TournelleSavoie1 Jean-Pierre & Philippe Grisard2 Denis & Didier Berthollier3 Jean-Pierre & Jean-François

Quenard4 D&P Belluard5 Domaine Jean Perrier & Fils (Haute

Sélection Gilbert Perrier range)

NEW UP-AND-COMINGPRODUCERS

Jura1 Domaine de la Borde2 Rémi Treuvey3 Jean-Marc BrignotSavoie1 Gilles Berlioz2 Domaine Saint-Germain3 Domaine Genoux

2001

Vintage rating: Jura – Red: 65,White: 73;Savoie – Red: 60,White: 68Jura – A difficult, fairly small, and variable vintage. AOC Château-Chalonwas declassified, but some decent vin jaune should be produced. Otherwines show variation, but some elegant and balanced Chardonnays andSavagnins were made.Savoie – Medium-quality vintage, especially difficult for reds, but somereasonable whites made.

2000

Vintage rating: Jura – Red: 79,White: 83;Savoie – Red: 79,White: 85Jura – A good-quality vintage overall, with attractive fruit characteristicsand reasonable structure but some lack of concentration, often due to highyields. Whites continue to age well.Savoie – A good year overall, with concentrated Bergeron and Altesse. Allbut the finest Mondeuse wines need drinking now.

BEST-VALUEPRODUCERS

Jura1 Daniel Dugois2 Domaine Rolet3 Domaine Baud Père & Fils4 Château Béthanie, Fruitière Vinicole

d’ArboisSavoie1 Domaine de l’Idylle2 Edmond Jacquin & Fils3 Domaine Jean Vullien & Fils4 Cave du Prieuré5 Pascal & Annick Quenard6 Cave de Chautagne

GREATEST-QUALITYWINES

Jura: The 1998 vin jaune andChâteau-Chalon still need at least fiveyears’ ageing.The other whites are ofburgundian (non-oxidative) style todrink from now.1 Château-Chalon 1998 François

Mossu (€28 per 62-cl bottle)2 Arbois Vin Jaune 1998 Domaine

Jacques Tissot (€28 per 62-cl bottle)3 Château-Chalon 1998 Domaine

Berthet-Bondet (€28 per 62-cl bottle)4 Côtes du Jura Savagnin Cuvée

Privilège 2003 Domaine Ganevat(€13)

5 Arbois Chardonnay LesBruyères 2003 Domaine André &Mireille Tissot (€13.80)

6 Côtes du Jura Chardonnay LesVarrons 2002 Domaine Labet Père& Fils (€11)

Savoie1 Vin de Savoie Mondeuse

Tradition 2003 Domaine PrieuréSaint-Christophe (€15)

2 Chignin Bergeron SaintAnthelme 2004 Denis & DidierBerthollier (€9)

3 Roussette de Savoie CuvéePrestige et Tradition Elevé enFûts 2004 Jean-Pierre & PhilippeGrisard (€7)

4 Roussette de Savoie Marestel2003 Domaine Dupasquier (€7)

BEST BARGAINS

Jura1 Côtes du Jura Chardonnay

2002 Domaine Rolet (€7.50)2 Arbois Pupillin Savagnin Ouillé

des Plantées 2004 Domaine dela Borde (€7.50)

3 Côtes du Jura Fleur deSavagnin 2002 Domaine LabetPère & Fils (€9)

Savoie1 Vin de Savoie Pinot Noir 2003

Domaine Dupasquier (€5.30)2 Chignin Mondeuse Vieilles

Vignes 2004 André & MichelQuenard (€6.10)

3 Vin de Savoie Mondeuse LesTaillis 2004 Domaine Saint-Germain (€5.50)

4 Roussette de Savoie Marestel2004 Cave du Prieuré (€7.20)

5 Vin de Savoie Mondeuse LaSaxicole Prestige 2003Domaine de l’Idylle (€8.50)

6 Roussette de Savoie Châteaude Monterminod 2004 DomaineJean Perrier & Fils (€7.50)

7 Roussette de Savoie Marestel2004 Edmond Jacquin & Fils (€8)

Grapevine

• Residual sugar levels ofchaptalized Savoie whites will belimited to 6 g/l for Vins de Savoieand 8 g/l for Roussette de Savoie ifnew AOC proposals are passed.

• La Percée du Vin Jaune 2007,the annual weekend festival in Jura,will take place on 3–4 February2007 in the historic town of Salinsles Bains. A record 50,000+ visitorsattended the event in Lons leSaunier in February 2006.

72 WINE REPORT 2007 GLOBAL REPORTS

MOST EXCITING ORUNUSUAL FINDS

Jura1 Mélodie Arbois 2004 Domaine

André & Mireille Tissot (€40 per half-bottle) An icewine made fromSavagnin grapes picked between 4 and 7am at an unusually low–10°C (14°F) on 22 December. At11 per cent alcohol it is incrediblydelicate; sweet but with wonderfulacidity and apricot/lemon flavours.

2 Côtes du Jura Chardonnay A laPercenette 2004 Domaine Pignier(€9) Pignier’s first foray into‘Burgundian-style’ Chardonnay.The fruit has great purity, perhapsbecause the domaine is inconversion to biodynamic methods,and this works well with light useof fairly new oak barrels.

3 Arbois Pinot Noir 2003Jacques Puffeney (€11) From thisextraordinary early vintage, 60-year-old Pinot vines produced avery low yield. Fermented andaged in foudres for one year andthen transferred to second- andthird-fill barrels. A resoundingsuccess, giving a delicious Pinot.

4 Arbois Trousseau Singulier2004 Domaine André & MireilleTissot (€12) Quite simply one ofthe most intense Trousseaux I’veever tasted. Stéphane Tissot vinifiedthis special parcel from low-yieldingvines separately to produce asingular wine, fermented in conicalwooden casks and aged indemimuids (600-litre barrels).

5 Côtes du Jura Les Goulesses2003 Sylvie & Luc Boilley (€13)This supremely balanced andflavoursome red is from an oldparcel of Trousseau, complantedwith a little Poulsard. The vintagegave wonderful concentrated fruit,yet there is a lively character tothe wine, too.

6 Arbois Grain de Folie 1997Domaine de la Pinte (€30) La Pinteowns relatively large proportions ofSavagnin and makes several styles.Its folie was to keep this wine inbarrel for seven years (the length of time for vin jaune) but keepingthe barrels topped up, giving aninteresting, intensely flavoured result.

Savoie1 Vin de Savoie Ayze Gringet

2004 D&P Belluard (€7.50) Thetiny cru between Geneva andChamonix specializes in sparklingwines from the Gringet grape(related to Traminer).This, however,is the best still wine from Ayze,made from vineyards partly inconversion to biodynamic methods.

2 Vin de Savoie Arbin MondeuseHarmonie 2004 Les Fils deCharles Trosset (€8) Trosset is oftencited in lists of the best Mondeusewines.The domaine never returnsmy calls, so I’ve never visited. But,for the first time, one of theirpurchased wines did very well inmy blind tastings.

3 Vin de Savoie Trilogie 2004René & Béatrice Bernard (€6.50)This serious Apremont producerhad some Marsanne in itsvineyard, which has been hiddenaway in their wines for years.Before the Marsanne wasuprooted, a special wine wasproduced, blending it withChardonnay and Jacquère. Lovelyyellow fruit flavours.

4 Vin de Savoie Chignin BergeronLe Bergeron d’Elisa 2004 Jean-Pierre & Jean-François Quenard (€14per half-bottle) Increasing numbersof Chignin producers leave somegrapes to make a late-harvestRoussanne (Bergeron) wine. Somenoble rot has given a delicatelyhoneyed wine. Not sweet enough tomatch dessert; delicious on its own.