Bonnet-Cotton / Marine Bonnet
About
Marine’s professional background is argonomy with an emphasis on viticulture, and together she and Cotton are implementing many changes throughout their jointly held vineyards. Throughout 2022, they planted 500 trees in the middle of their holdings in Brouilly, in an effort to recreate lost habitat for animals in the vineyards, particularly between the streams at lower elevations and the copses of woods at the peak of each Beaujolais cru, which are usually hilltops. Marine also has guided further interplanting of specific tree species in an effort to stave off the intense droughts Beaujolais has endured, via the water retention trees provide, as well as adding shade and decreasing overall temperatures in the vineyards. Pierre and Marine have also been speaking with neighbors in Brouilly and other villages to join in these changes, potentially contributing to a communal effort against climate change and some of the disastrous vintages growers have suffered here in the last five-six years.
All of the wines at Bonnet-Cotton are vinified with native yeast and without SO2 in concrete tanks, then aged underground in century-old large foudres. (These were originally built for holding beer and then repurposed in the 1950s and 60s.) The foudres in which the wines rest range in size from 1400 – 4800L. Winemaking style is typically partial carbonic maceration; Pierre and Marine will use a touch of SO2 (max 10g/l) before bottling if they sense that an entire foudre is anything less than perfect. Most cuvées receive no sulfur additions as long as there isn’t need; the practice is dependent on vintage and vessel.
With the 2022 vintage, the winery has added a suite of new wines to their lineup, including experimental new wines. Some of these cuvées are made in collaboration with friendly growers in and nearby the Beaujolais; some are from relatively newer plantations at the home property, including the PiWi varieties Souvignier Gris and Muscaris, in which Marine and Pierre are interested for their climate-resistant qualities. The domaine continues to evolve and experiment along with continuing to make lovely iterations of the parcel- and cru-specific Beaujolais for which they’re rightly celebrated.
Products
Brouilly 100% Cotton
Organic. Located right next to the Bonnet-Cotton winery in Odénas, Cotton’s parcel of Côte de Brouilly is on a unique terroir of ‘corne verte,’ a particular soil blend of pink granite and diorite which Pierre claims is found nowhere else in the Beaujolais. The Côte de Brouilly ‘100% Cotton’ was the first cuvée Pierre made, and it remains the emblematic wine of the domaine: a structured, powerful Gamay that retains the freshness and easy-drinking quality of the best Beaujolais. Full carbonic maceration of whole clusters in cement tank, then aged in foudre for eight months. unfined, unfiltered, no sulfites added.
Beaujolais
Organic. Mostly Gamay, with some varietally-undisclosed “white juice” blended in. Grapes are hand-harvested from several parcels that use organic practices, including some from Bonnet-Cotton, as well as friends Domaine les Souriants, Domaine les Garçons, Romain Jambon, and Baptiste Bertrand. Fermented and aged eight months in concrete tanks; unfined, unfiltered. Full carbonic maceration of whole clusters in cement tank, then aged in foudre for eight months. 1ppm so2 added during racking.
Brouilly 'Les Mines'
Organic.Taken from one single vineyard parcel of 1.5ha on pink granite called ‘Les Mines,’ of 65 year-old vines in the village of Brouilly. Full carbonic maceration in large cement tanks with whole clusters, then aged in large old foudre for eight months. Unfined, unfiltered. No SO2 added.
Cote de Brouilly '100% Cotton'
Organic. Located right next to the Bonnet-Cotton winery in Odénas, Cotton’s parcel of Côte de Brouilly is on a unique terroir of ‘corne verte,’ a particular soil blend of pink granite and diorite which Pierre claims is found nowhere else in the Beaujolais. The Côte de Brouilly ‘100% Cotton’ was the first cuvée Pierre made, and it remains the emblematic wine of the domaine: a structured, powerful Gamay that retains the freshness and easy-drinking quality of the best Beaujolais. Full carbonic maceration of whole clusters in cement tank, then aged in foudre for eight months. unfined, unfiltered, no sulfites added.
Cote de Brouilly 'La Chapelle'
Organic. Pierre and Marine jumped at the chance to acquire this small parcel above the winery at the very top of the Côte de Brouilly. This is the highest elevation vineyard in the appellation, located just before the small chapel at the top of the hill in Odenas, so they named the wine “La Chapelle.” It is a supremely elegant Gamay with the same unique blue diorite terroir found in “Les Grilles,” but at a higher altitude. Full carbonic maceration of whole clusters in cement tank, then aged in foudre for eight months. unfined, unfiltered, no sulfites added.
Cote de Brouilly 'Les Grilles'
Organic. The combination of pink, yellow, and red granite is only found in this 1.5 hectare parcel called 'Les Grillés,' or The Grids, which refers to the various layers of rock, located on the slope just next to the winery in Odénas. 'Les Grillés' was the first single-vineyard parcel Cotton produced and is often the richest wine of each vintage. Full carbonic maceration of whole clusters in cement tank, then aged in foudre for eight months. unfined, unfiltered, no sulfites added.
Fleurie 'Poncie'
Fleurie ‘Poncié’ comes from a beautiful old Gamay vineyard, planted in the ’60s and ’70s, facing south towards the village of Fleurie. The parcel is vinified exactly the same as Cotton’s other wines, showcasing the difference between his native terroir of Brouilly and the softer, more fruited wines from Fleurie. Less tannic than the other bottlings and an interesting interpretation of the Bonnet-Cotton style. Full carbonic maceration of whole clusters in cement tank, then aged in foudre for eight months. unfined, unfiltered, no sulfites added.
Regnie 'Les Buillats'
Certified Organic. 100% Gamay. A great old-vines vineyard hailing from the cru of Régnié; vines here were planted in three moments, between 1927, the 1940s, and the ’90s. The soils are yellow granite with some sand; the vineyard is only .8ha in size. Full carbonic maceration of whole clusters in cement tank, then aged in foudre for eight months. unfined, unfiltered, no sulfites added.
Chardonnay Vin de France
Certified organic.100% Chardonnay, taken from a single plot of young vines planted at the domaine on a unique vein of limestone. Fermented and aged in oak barrels for eight months; unfined, unfiltered, zero SO2 added.
Gamay 'Ygueule' Vin de France
The most playful red at the Bonnet-Cotton domaine; this cuvée is usually a blend of declassified grapes from the domaine's Beaujolais and Brouilly vineyards that don't quite match the quality for their eponymous cuvées, as well as some free-run juice from carbonic macerations of other cuvées. The varieties change every year; in 2022 the wine is a mix of Gamay, Mondeuse, and Chardonnay. Full carbonic maceration of whole clusters in cement tank; then aged in foudres for around seven months. Unfined, unfiltered. <10g/l SO2 added before bottling.
Vin de France Rouge 'Piscine Olympique'
Organic. 40% Gamay, 30% Muscaris, 30% Souvignier Gris. All three grape varieties are macerated together, whole-cluster, using the “alternating layers” method inside a cement tank. Aged eight months in the same vessel, no fining, filtering, or SO2 added.
Vin de France 'Carbonique Orange'
Certified organic. 100% Chardonnay, taken from a single plot of young vines planted at the domaine on a unique vein of limestone. Grapes undergo whole-cluster carbonic maceration in cement tanks before being moved to oak barrels to age for eight months. Unfined, unfiltered, zero SO2 added.
