GRÉGORY GUILLAUME
L’Excentrique 2023
Ardèche, France
Merlot from thirty five year old vines hidden away in the hills, which fermented as whole bunches for ten days, before being pressed to cuve for a year of rest. The result is a pure and vibrant wine that pairs plum, black fig, earth and spice to beautiful effect. Full of southern charm, this is a wine we will be reaching for time and time again during the cooler months.
Merlot
ABOUT THE PRODUCER
Grégory Guillaume started making wine in 2011, having originally moved to the Ardèche to explore caves.
Greg discovered the joys of growing grapes and making wine from a friend he worked alongside before starting out on his own. He’s a laid-back, easygoing guy who makes wine the way he does simply because it is what he likes to drink. His way of farming fits into a wider philosophy built around a deep respect for nature and its ability to bring harmony to one’s life.
Today Greg farms about three hectares of vines around the picturesque villages of Villeneuve-de-Berg and Alba-la-Romaine. The vineyards are planted over clay and limestone and are tended organically; biodiversity is championed and they visibly teem with life. The beautiful setting and Greg’s work in the vines provide the kind of pristine fruit that is so important when making wines this way.
Greg makes his wines in a simple shed on the outskirts of Villeneuve, using the most basic of equipment and his knack for texture and perfume to make the kind of pure, nourishing wines we find ourselves reaching for time and time again.