Valentin Morel

Jura
France
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Valentin Morel

Jura
France
France
PRODUCER
Valentin Morel
ESTABLISHED
1978
FARMING PRACTICE
Biodynamic, Organic
REGION
Jura
France
CITY / VILLAGE
CLIMATE
Continental
ELEVATION
SIZE

About

Valentin Morel, of the winery he’s called Les Pieds sur Terre, or ‘feet on the ground / vines on the ground,’ is one of the most principled and thoughtful French vintners with whom we work. He took over his father’s domaine in 2014, which had previously been farmed organically, but then immediately altered the farming techniques to even more simple and holistic ends. Valentin is an ideologue, and we mean it in the best way: he believes manual labor, agriculture, and artisanal work are political acts, and that to be a farmer is one of the more important pursuits available to humans.

Morel’s wines seem to us to reflect his frankness: there’s a clarity and a beauty in them, but they are not lacy, not delicate: they have a hearty quality, with the native power of the Jura, and an honesty that’s impossible to fake. There are several more traditional wines: Chardonnay, Savagnin, Poulsard and Trousseau, jewel-like and fuller-bodied at the same time, but Valentin is also working with new vineyards of hybrid varieties, vinified with more experimental techniques, believing we all must adapt and respond to the current environmental and political crises of our world. These wines are a touch wilder in tone, perhaps, but they represent a corner of progressive vinifying in France about which we’re excited.

Morel’s work is special, and his wines represent free-thinking, talented craftsmanship, with a devotion to place, people, plants, and the relations between them all. The wines themselves benefit from time: they have enough substance that a few years in bottle reveals elegance and more lift. Grab these while you can!

Products

Cotes du Jura Chardonnay Les Trouillots

TYPE
Still / White
VARIETAL
Chardonnay
FARMING PRACTICE
Biodynamic Organic
DETAILS

Organic. This Chardonnay comes from 35 year old vines planted on Trouillot marl terroir. Hand harvested, destemmed, and pressed directly to tank. Native yeast fermentation and malolactic fermentation start in tank and wine is then transferred to neutral 600L barrels to complete fermentation. No SO2, no fining, no filtration.

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Cotes du Jura Chardonnay Saint Savin

TYPE
Still / White
VARIETAL
Chardonnay
FARMING PRACTICE
Biodynamic Organic
DETAILS

Organic. Single-vineyard topped-up style of Chardonnay; 1.6ha of vines planted in 1980s by Valentin’s father on limestone soils at 350m, on a west-facing parcel. This wine is done direct press, with, fermentation in stainless steel tanks as well as barrels; all aging is in neutral barrel. No SO2, no fining, no filtration.

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Cotes du Jura Poulsard Les Trouillots

TYPE
Still / Red
VARIETAL
Poulsard
FARMING PRACTICE
Biodynamic Organic
DETAILS

Organic. The Trouillots vineyard was planted by Valentin's father in the early 80s. The terroir is a blend of red and gray marl with limestone bedrock and faces due south; it is the heart of Valentin’s domaine. 15 days’ maceration, ferment and aging for roughly eight months in stainless steel.

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Cotes du Jura Pinot Noir Les Trouillots

TYPE
Still / Red
VARIETAL
Pinot Noir
FARMING PRACTICE
Biodynamic Organic
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Cotes du Jura Savagnin Ouille

TYPE
Still / White
VARIETAL
Savagnin
FARMING PRACTICE
Biodynamic Organic
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Cotes du Jura Trousseau Les Trouillots

TYPE
Still / Red
VARIETAL
Trousseau
FARMING PRACTICE
Biodynamic Organic
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Cotes du Jura Savagnin Bois d'Arnaux Maceration

TYPE
Still / White
VARIETAL
Savagnin
FARMING PRACTICE
Biodynamic Organic
DETAILS

Biodynamic. 100% Savagnin (1/3 Savagnin Rose, 2/3 Savagnin Jaune). Sourced from the parcel, Bois d’Arnaux, Valentine planted in 2015. 1.8 ha (including 60 ares Savagin) on Jurassic marl soils at 350 meters above sea level. This 2018 harvest was the first harvest of this parcel. Manuel harvest. 6 weeks maceration in whole clusters, then aged two years in demi-muids of 220, 500, and 600L. Assembled in tank before bottling in July 2020. Unfiltered. 700 cases made.

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Vin de France 'Hommage a la Canaille'

TYPE
Still / Red
VARIETAL
Plantet rouge, Seyve-Villard B, Rayon d’Or B, Souvignier Gris B, Sauvignac
FARMING PRACTICE
Biodynamic Organic
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Vin de France Broken Hearts are for Assholes Rose

TYPE
Still / Rosé
VARIETAL
FARMING PRACTICE
Biodynamic Organic
DETAILS

Biodynamic. A cuvée made with Chardonnay from the 2020 harvest; fermented again with the pomace of various PiWi varieties harvested in 2021 (Plantet Rouge, Seyve-Villard, Sauvignac, among others). Alcoholic and malolactic fermentation in stainless steel tanks. The wine was aged in 228L barrels for roughly eight months. Bottled in September 2022 unfiltered, with no added SO2.

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Vin de France 'Bulle Magique'

TYPE
Still / White
VARIETAL
Chardonnay
FARMING PRACTICE
Biodynamic
DETAILS

Organic. 100% Chardonnay, drawn from a parcel of 40 year-old vines planted on Jurassic-era limestone scree. The juice underwent fermentation and aging in wooden barrels for 12 months; the resulting wine was bottled in early september of 2020 — during harvest — with some of that year’s musts. Second fermentation, prise de mousse, with indigenous yeasts. Aging on the fine lees in bottles for almost three years. The wines were disgorged in August of 2023 at a ‘Brut’ level of sweetness with 10 g/L of natural residual sugar; no dosage involved.

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Cotes du Jura Poulsard en Bois d'Arnaux

TYPE
Still / Red
VARIETAL
Poulsard
FARMING PRACTICE
Biodynamic
DETAILS

Organic. 100% Poulsard from a younger plantation of ten year-old vines, on a west-facing slope with a base of Triassic-era marl terroir. Hand-harvested, fermented and aged in stainless steel for ten months before bottling unfined/unfiltered, with no added SO2.

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