Savoie

Vins Vivants

In early 2024, we were lucky to meet Juliette Gest at a large tasting of organic Alpine wines where her wines stood out for their purity and energy. Only later did we discover that the name of her winery is Vins Vivants. Juliette worked for 20 years as a judge in Paris. In 2020, overwhelmed by confinement and the anguish in the city caused by the COVID epidemic, Juliette left Paris and began a new chapter in her life by moving to the Alps and studying agriculture and oenology in Chambery. After finishing her studies, she worked for several organic and biodynamic producers in the Savoie. Quickly, she found four hectares for sale in the village of Andert et Condon, which is in the southeast corner of the Bugey appellation, very close to Savoie. In 2023, Juliette planted a couple of hectares in the Bugey hills with nearly a dozen different varieties and converted an existing barn into a winery. While her vines are coming of age, she is buying organic and biodynamic fruit from her friends and former employees in Bugey and Savoie.

All of Juliette’s grapes are hand harvested and fermented with their natural yeasts. She doesn’t use SO2 until adding a small amount before bottling.

 

Sylvain Liotard farms 5.7 hectares in the village of Chapareillan, along the slopes of the famous Mont Granier. He began in 2014 and pursues a viticulture that is both organic and biodynamic. The domaine is now certified by both Ecocert and Demeter. Sylvain produces wines in the appellations of Abymes, Apremont and Roussette de Savoie, as well as a white blend and two reds from Mondeuse and Gamay.