2020 Baptiste Nayrand Coteaux du Lyonnais "L'Astrale", Rhone Valley, France
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ABOUT THIS WINE
'L'Astrale' comes from Baptiste's oldest Gamay Vines in Millery and is only produced in the best years. 3 vineyard sites with 60 year old vines totaling 1 hectare - Archette, Combarinel, and Charpenay.
Whole cluster and native yeast fermentation in barrel with no added sulfur or temperature control. Aged 6 months in fiberglass tanks.
ABOUT THIS PRODUCER
Originally from the area around Lyon, Baptiste Nayrand created his eponymous domaine from scratch in 2014. Today he has just over six hectares of vines, which is the maximum he can farm by himself to maintain the quality he requires. The majority of vineyards are dedicated to Gamay in the AOP Coteaux du Lyonnais, a small, rather unknown appellation on the outskirts of Lyon, located between the Beaujolais and the Northern Rhône. There is also a small amount of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Aligoté permitted in the AOP Coteaux du Lyonnais.
These wines have a similar excitement and energy found in the most legendary natural wine producers in France. Cognizant of the natural wine movement for many years as a wine drinker, Baptiste created his estate with a drive to produce exceptional natural wines, and has written his own eloquent philosophy for the domaine:
"Since its inception, the entire domaine has been certified organic. The vineyard is maintained without any chemical products, pesticides, or synthetic fertilizer. The soil is plowed to encourage microbial activity. Parallel infusions of horsetail, nettle, comfrey, and willow are used to reinforce and structure the vines during their vegetative period, and to reduce to a strict minimum the use of copper and sulfur. The domaine also uses biodynamic methods, with the constant objective to recreate the harmony between the mineral, vegetable, human, and cosmos. Vinifications are done exclusively with native yeast, without sulfur dioxide, and without any modern oenological products. All vinification takes place without the use of temperature control (neither heating or cooling), as the objective is to infuse the grapes rather than to extract them. As a result, there are very few punchdowns or pumpovers executed, for the sake of respecting the integrity of the grapes as long as possible, as well as to obtain maximum finesse and complexity. Conscious of the health of our customers, we reduce the quantity of sulfites in the wine to the strict minimum to guarantee a better digestibility and an ivresse joyeuse (literally a joyful inebriation, but it sounds better in French)."