Les Valseuses
Les-Planches-près-Arbois, Jura
Antoine Le Court-Chedevergne (Angers, France) and Julia Naar (Rio, Brazil) are part of an exciting new wave of winemaking talent to come through in the Jura region. Antoine’s journey has taken him across the world making both wine and spontaneous ferment beer — from Australia to California and Brazil, where he met Julia. Most influentially he spent a year working with Alice Bouvot in Arbois and in whose cellar he made his first vintage of ‘Les Valseuses’ wines.
Now the couple have purchased a stunning guesthouse, Casa Antolia, in the small village of Les-Planches-près-Arbois and are utilising the centuries old cellar beneath the property. They are in the process of planting their own vines nearby and in the meantime have travelled France to harvest fruit from friends around the country. The product of their labour is one of the most unique and daring négociant projects in France.
In the cellar, gentle but long macerations are favoured, and blends of red and white varieties are common. There is neither pigeage nor pumping over and only ever one racking, with everything done by hand, including bottling. The resulting wines are concentrated and startlingly pure, these characteristics only emphasised by the long élevage and time in bottle. The name of each cuvée pays homage to the music they love from around the world that has inspired them along the way.
