April 09, 2014
Mondeuse Master

Jean-Yves Peron has amassed a cult following by devoting himself to making radically natural wines from the Mondeuse grape, a rare native to Savoie. Peron takes natural to the max—organic farming, wild yeasts, minimal interventions, no fining, filtering, or sulfur. He vinifies the whole cluster, and uses no temperature control. His vines are as old as 130 years, and his cellar is the basement of his family farmhouse.This is back-to-roots winemaking that is deeply connected to Savoie, and the result is a wine with a personality you won’t find anywhere else.

Mondeuse is an extremely rare grape. Plantings of it were hit hard during the phylloxera epidemic and the grape was nearly wiped out in France. By 2009, there were just over 300 ha left in the country, mostly in Savoie. For years there were theories that it was related to the Italian Refosco grape, but DNA evidence has debunked that. It’s a mid-ripening grape that thrives on stony vineyard soils with high limestone and clay. It’s vigorous, so pruning is important. Being susceptible to both mildew and drought means that a very steady hand is required to grow it.

Peron appears to have one. His not one, but two versions of Mondeuse wines show an impeccable balance between delicate weight and firm structure. He grows the grapes on two hectares of mica-schist soils at altitudes of over 1,400 feet, near the medieval city of Conflans. His ‘Champ Levat’ is the more youthful and juicy of the two. The 2009 ‘Champ Levat’ is a slatey purple hue and hints of mulberry in the glass. The nose opens up with stone, spice, and fresh plum. The palate is incredibly juicy, with prunes, fresh blackberries, and a hint of watermelon. It’s the wine you want during the summer at a neighborhood baseball game, while your kid slides into home plate. The 2010 ‘Champ Levat’ shows a bit more of an earthy funk to the nose, and the fruit is more subdued on the palate. His ‘Cote Pelee,’ also Mondeuse, is grown on a hotter, southern-facing parcel, and the wine is fuller for it. It expresses savory, exotic aromas of stewed prunes, dates, and curry spice. The tannins are fine and minerally. The wines undergo carbonic maceration and one-week fermentation, then are aged for a year in barrel.

These are deeply colored and aromatic wines with welterweight body but a solid tannic backbone. By stepping back and letting the grapes show a completely unmanipulated expression of Savoie’s terroir, Peron offers an honest snapshot of this far-flung region on the border of Switzerland. Fortunately, these are cheese wines to be sure, so grab a hunk of Emmentaler or Raclette with your glass of Mondeuse, and you’ll be yodeling the praises of this unique part of the French Alps.