Alice Bouvot started from scratch in the Arbois region of Jura in 2004, when she bought a small cellar and a couple of hectares of vines in the surrounding hills. The plots now reach around 5 hectares of vines of Chardonnay, Savagnin, Poulsard, Trousseau and Pinot Noir. The vineyards are Demeter certified, biodynamically farmed, and include some of the most recognizable names in France: En Curon, La Mailloche, Les Nouvelles and Les Corvées.
The work in the vineyard is carried out by hand, wild grass, weeds, insects and animals share the space in the vineyards and help creating an ecosystem that gives a deeper meaning to the wines of L’Octavin.
There is no recipe at L’Octavin, the winemaking is dynamic, she compares it to improvising music, not playing by the notes. It is not technically perfect but it has emotions and feelings.
Decisions are made only once the grapes have arrived in the cellar. They are fermented in fiber glass or barrels with indigenous yeasts, with no temperature control, with the elevage varying from parcel to parcel and vintage to vintage. It’s a refreshingly free approach that produces stunning wines of real character, where each wine is as nourishing, delicious and exciting as the last.
Alice doesn’t use any additions in the wines, sulfites are never added at any stage, and they are not filtered or fined. Most of the wines reflect a single plot expression, like the Don Giovanni from a plot of very old Pinot Noir and some Chardonnay where the cuvée merge these two grapes into something truly unique.
L’Octavin produces an impressive lineup in their small winery. Some are classical Jura wines like the Pamina Chardonnay and the Dorabella Poulsard, while others are fascinating wines with quite a different and surprising touch, like the Culrond Poulsard, that is vinified as a white wine even though the grapes are red, or the Zerlina, which is a blend of Trousseau and Pinot Noir.
