Savoie! Very Exclusive Cuvées from Maxime Dancoine (l’Aitonnement) & the Glory of Adrien Berlioz’ Chignin-Bergeron

----- We recently asked our former colleague and #1 Savoie fanboy, David Hatzopoulos, if he was excited about any new arrivals from the Savoie, and he was kind enough to write up a piece about some new arrivals. We've tasted some of the wines from Domaine de l'Aitonnement with David and we were thouroughly impressed with the density and length of the wines, so we're happy to be able to offer some of these limited bottlings. ------

When I met Maxime Dancoine of Domaine de l’Aitonnement on an early Savoie evening last September, he wasn’t expecting the visit. In fact, my (now) boss, my wife, and I were in the small village of Aiton, on a slope overlooking the Arc River, accompanied by the fantastic Marie-Dominique Bachellier of Domaine les Sartos du Bec. She and her husband are winemakers in the village, which was once a hub for Mondeuse. The vineyards were too steep for tractors and other machines of the modernizing industry, however, and in the later half of the 20th century the legacy of winemaking in the village found itself almost completely abandoned. However, in 2016, Maxime came to Aiton and began collaborating with Marie-Dominique and her husband, Bernard - a couple who staunchly advocate organic and biodynamic viticulture.

If you’re a follower (or rather, a seeker) of French Alpine bottles, you might have stumbled upon Maxime’s wines on shelves in America. For a brief moment many years ago he was imported into the States. I found a bottle of his ‘16 Genesis (100% Jacquere) at a small shop in Brooklyn just a couple months ago. It was the last one in stock, standing all alone like a glowing gem - and the wine was brilliant when I opened it a few weeks later, healthily singing the salty, textured song of a perfect Alpine white.

After training as an oenologist in Beaune and Changins (Switzerland), Maxime came to the Savoie in 2010. Sandwiched between his time at the Chamber of Agriculture and a short career at an important regional oenological laboratory, he worked alongside the venerable Louis Magnin in Arbin. Like the Bachelliers, Louis has invested deeply in sustainable viticulture and, more successfully than most, has pushed the popularity of Mondeuse in the international wine market. Although Maxime was at Domaine Louis Magnin for only a stint of time, it was a chance for him to work closely with one of the legends of Savoie winemaking.

Today, Maxime farms two hectares of vines planted with Jacquere, Altesse, and Mondeuse, as well as less known varieties from the area, like Douce Noire, Blanc de Maurienne, Joubertin Noir, Mondeuse Grise, and Mondeuse Blanc - rooted in soils of gray limestone and degraded schist. Like the vignerons he’s been involved with, he is working completely organically, but he is also introducing biodynamic techniques to his small holdings. In the cellar, fermentation happens naturally and without the addition of sulfur. Limited SO2 is typically added at bottling.

Above his winery, me and the gang tasted with Maxime for nearly four hours. We listened to his story, his opinions on winemaking, and his dreams of future accomplishments. His wines, which I had only brief experience with beforehand, were chiseled, balanced, yet intriguing expressions of Savoie excellence. The small allocation of wines from l’Aitonnement on offer today should not be missed. He is joining a rather exclusive echelon of Alpine winemakers in the area, choosing to farm with nature in mind, and creating thrilling products this world is only getting more and more thirsty for.

Another in these ranks is Adrien Berlioz, a master of Bergeron. There are a few fantastic producers in Chignin, but none get the amount of attention that the Berlioz cousins receive. Gilles and Adrien Berlioz are lauded in cities across the globe for their “natural” approach to viticulture and their superb winemaking skills. We’re incredibly excited to showcase a lineup of wines from Adrien. These are well-fruited wines of depth and character - with an everlasting evolution in the glass. An open bottle from Adrien will continue to develop over an entire week, with compelling, morphing flavors and structure - and their cellaring potential is just as impressive. Because he is more well-known than Maxime in the American market, I’ll simply direct readers to the Living Wine website to read about his 7-hectare biodynamic estate under the glorious Bauges Massif. But, like the incredible bottles we’re offering from Maxime, the bottles below from Adrien Berlioz are essential experiences for those eager to revel in the power of French Alpine wine.

-David Hatzopoulos

All wines will be available for delivery and pick up after Wednesday 4/19