Merlot

High up on the steep slopes of Vallée de l'Ibie in Southern Ardèche, not far from a rediscovered stone-age cave, you will find the vineyards of Jérôme Jouret. His 12ha of land is certified Organic by Ecocert, although the 30-45 year old vines have never known chemicals anyway. Today, Jérôme's practices are more biodynamic in nature. Jérôme grows Alicante, Grenache, Cabernet Sauvignon, Carignan, Ugni Blanc, Viognier and Clairette on limestone and clay soils.

Where to begin with the legend behind Escoda-Sanahuja? Unapologetically big personality, unapologetically awesome wines. Vigneron Joan Ramon began making his magical wines in 1997, caring for his vineyards without chemicals from the start. This evolved over time to Biodynamic practices which have been the standard since 2003. In 2007 Joan quit adding any So2 to his wines at any point, and he is now a passionate opponent of the practice. The land spreads over 10ha near Montblanc in Catalunya, which along with the vines is used for olives, almonds, vegetables and animals.

In the old bush vines of Alicante works natural vigneron Rafa Bernabé. The white varieties are planted close to the sea, where they rely on it's cooling breezes, whilst the red grapes are found soaking up the sun further inland. Varieties are Moscatel, Merseguera, Garnacha Peluda and Monastrell. He harvests early, particularly for the white varieties in order to ensure freshness in the wines. In the winery, his methods are simple: no added yeasts and no added SO2 where possible.

A protegée of the great Olivier Cousin and avid devotée to horse ploughing, Simon Busser farms 5 ha of Malbec, Merlot and Tannat on the Lot River, outside Cahors. The influence of his mentor is clear in Simon's biodynamic rituals. In lieu of copper, he applies fermented teas and local plant extracts such as garlic, willow and nettle on the vines. The vineyard is relatively flat and benefits from free draining soil, long warm days and cool nights which give the wines the complexity they deserve under the guidance of such a talented vigneron.