GRÉGORY GUILLAUME
Lou Coulego 2021
Ardèche, France
From a forty five year old parcel of Chardonnay planted over clay and limestone on a hillside outside Alba-la-Romaine, this was given a direct press before spending a year in old barrels. Pale straw yellow in the glass, this is a little more nuanced than previous vintages, with gentle notes of citrus and stones combining to make a particularly joyful expression of the grape.
Chardonnay
ABOUT THE PRODUCER
Grégory Guillaume started making wine in 2011, having originally moved to the Ardèche to explore caves. He discovered the joys of artisan wine from a friend, with whom he worked before starting out on his own. He now farms around three hectares of vines around the picturesque villages of Villeneuve-de-Berg and Alba-la-Romaine.
Greg is an easygoing guy who makes natural wine simply because it is what he likes to drink. This way of farming and indeed of life fits into a wider philosophy of a respect for nature and its ability to thrive through finding its own equilibrium.
The vineyards are planted over clay and limestone and are tended organically, biodiversity is championed and they visibly teem with life. This setting provides the clean, healthy fruit so important when making wines this way. Since the beginning, Greg has never added anything to his wines. He’s always been happy to take this risk in the hope of making pure, nourishing wines that people will enjoy everyday and he does just that. While these aren’t the most complex wines in the world, that isn’t the point. They are simply a joy to drink.