Domaine de Sainte Marie L'Étoile Ensemblage 2022

The Ensemblage from Domaine de Sainte Marie comes from L’Étoile, one of the smallest appellations in the Jura, nestled south of Lons-le-Saunier. Its name is said to evoke the star-shaped crinoid fossils found in its soils. The vines thrive there on marl-limestone slopes rich in limestone, under a semi-continental climate, ideal for the taut, saline whites that have made the appellation’s reputation.

The estate’s signature, this cuvée blends Savagnin, Chardonnay and Poulsard, the latter being pressed and vinified as a white wine. The wines are vinified in tank, with native yeasts, then aged in oak vats (foudres) for about ten months. The secret behind this blend, unique in the Jura, is jealously guarded by the house.

This wine reveals notes of pear, yellow apple, brioche, fresh butter, walnut, curry, dried flowers and red fruit. Beneath a brilliant gold colour, the nose blends ripe fruit, buttery notes and slightly oxidative touches. The palate is broad and round, supported by fresh acidity, delicate salinity and a long, balanced finish.

The cradle of wine culture in Western Europe, France owes its first vines to the Greeks of Phocaea, who settled around Marseille some twenty-six centuries ago, before the Romans spread viticulture along the Rhône and the Garonne and as far as Champagne. In the Middle Ages, Cistercian and Benedictine monks cleared the slopes of Burgundy and patiently mapped out the climats, laying the foundations of the notion of terroir. The 19th century brought the glory of the classifications, then the disaster of phylloxera, which wiped out the vineyards before they were rebuilt on American rootstocks; the creation of the appellations d'origine contrôlée in the 1930s then set the rules that would inspire the whole world. Today, France vies every year with Italy and Spain for first place in world production by volume and remains the ultimate benchmark of the Old World, as much for its age-worthy wines as for its winemaking models. Vineyards cover almost the entire country, from the cool north of Champagne and Alsace to the Mediterranean shores of Languedoc and Provence, by way of the oceanic climates of Bordeaux, the Loire and the South-West, continental Burgundy, the steep slopes of the northern Rhône and the high-altitude valleys of Savoie and the Jura. This mosaic of soils – limestone, schist, gravel or rounded pebbles – explains the extraordinary diversity of styles. As for grape varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot dominate Bordeaux and produce structured reds, Pinot Noir is the signature of Burgundian finesse, Syrah of the depth of the Rhône, while Grenache, Gamay, Cabernet Franc and Mourvèdre cover every register, from easy-drinking wines to wines for long ageing. Among the whites, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin, Riesling and Viognier offer expressions ranging from lively and mineral to unctuous, all the way to great sweet wines. A land of benchmarks and constant discoveries, France remains the compass for wine lovers the world over.