2016 Domaine Labet Vin Jaune

WINEMAKER: Julien Labet REGION: Jura, FR VARIETY: Savagnin VITICULTURE: Organic/Biodynamic | NOT FOR ONLINE SALE. | [The Labet family owns 12 hectares of vines in the small town of Rotalier, in the southern part of Jura not far from Lons le Saunier. The domaine is just 15 minutes south of Château Chalon (a small AOC known for its excellent Vin Jaune). Importantly for quality, one third of the Labet vines are over 60 years of age with the majority of the vines come from old massal selections. | In 1992 Alain Labet became famous for producing the first of his “Fleur” or topped-up white wines, he was the first in the Jura to do so. These wines are protected from oxygen and are topped up and lees stirred in the same way as white Burgundy. Fans of the whites of Jean-François Ganevat take note. | Julien Labet is Alain’s son and the winemaker nowadays. He has three hectares of the family property to produce wines under his own label and these are the wines that I liked the most. He is not afraid to take the risks necessary to produce captivating wine and follows the same heightened observation, minimal intervention route of all our best vignerons. | In the vines he practices de-budding and uses a motorised cultivator during Spring and a lawn mower in August to manage the grass. Uses Bordeaux mixture, sulphur (flower), milk, horsetail, nettle, willow 4 to 5 times a year (at 50 % of the recommended dose) to fight against oidium and mildew. No chemical herbicides or pesticides, no fertilizers. The vines are harvested by hand with the grape pickers doing the sorting in the vineyard at yields of 10 to 15 hl/ha.]