euro trip: destination france 🇫🇷

les équilibristes’ means tightrope walkers, and it’s that gravity-defying sense of balance that florent and francois aim to achieve. françois de monval is a merchant and restauranteur in paris, florent girou is a winegrower and consulting oenologist in the dordogne. together they work with creative, independent growers to do something outside of their comfort zone, by creating new blends or focusing on neglected varietals. it’s a collaborative process, from choosing the site to final bottling. these are their ground rules: great terroir, organic, minimal intervention in the cellar, minimal use of sulfur, and complete synergy with the winegrower. they are currently working with 7 winemakers across 5 regions and 18 grape varieties. this is a super refreshing white wine made from the ancient picpoul grape, native to this southern french wine region located on the mediterranean. picpoul means lip stinger and produces super sharp white wines usually thought of as the 'muscadet of the south'. this vibrant wine is so crisp and juicy with a smooth mouthfeel and bursting with notes of peaches, green apple, pear and floral characteristics with subtle notes of salinity.

halfway between the french riviera and the tuscan coast, the ruggedly beautiful island of corsica has quietly been producing world class wine and olive oil for centuries, but the insular nature of the island made a thriving export business difficult…but thankfully that is changing! the diverse geology and varied landscapes allow the small, family farms to make wines that are truly distinct and delicious. in 1966, gilles seroin’s father, paul, and grandfather, lucien, established sant armettu in the southwestern corner of corsica, where the martini mountains meet the high-elevation baracci valley. the estate is named after a legendary hermit monk, an early ‘plant whisperer’, who was obsessed with everything that grows out of the earth. gilles has been at the helm for several decades and is now joined by his children jeanne and guillaume. the distinct terroir of this region, known officially as vin corse sartène, is a result of the confluence of the mountain winds, the steep, granite-laden slopes, and the close proximity to the mediterranean sea.  this is 100% sciacarellu, a local grape whose genetic cousins can be found in tuscany and other parts of central italy. it’s fermented and aged exclusively in steel tanks. it’s full of bright red fruits, spice and saline, earthy minerality.

augustus was the first vandelle to move to l’étoile in 1883.  six generations later, philippe possesses the same passion for this terroir.  from a very young age, he walked the vineyards by the side of his grandfather, joseph.  in this way, the vandelle family has passed their winemaking secrets from father to son, teaching each new generation the methods of limiting yields, grape maturation, alcoholic fermentation, and aging ‘sous voile.’ the domaine is a follower of ‘l’agriculture raisonnée’ aka sustainable agriculture. this wine is made from 100% trousseau, a native grape to france's jura region, tucked between burgundy to the west and switzerland to the east. it light with red berry fruit and lively acidity but a slight vanilla streak makes it super satisfying!

nestled in the hills of the languedoc in southern france, château de la liquière is a small family-owned domaine that believes in creating new expressions of their land using traditional winemaking skills learned through several generations. harvests are done by hand, with vinification and aging in tanks.  this wine is a blend of carignan, grenache, syrah and mourvèdre (think rhône blend but from neighboring languedoc-rousillon!)  made from old vines that have deep roots in the schist soils with few and far between clusters which make them more concentrated in flavor and…precious. this bold red is full of red and black, brambly fruit driven by mineral notes.