Desiré Petit Le Grapiot Arbois Pupillin Chardonnay 2020

A deliciously mineral 'No Sulphites' Chardonnay, lightly oaked and with bags of character and personality.

The small wine producing Jura region of eastern France sits between Burgundy and the Swiss border and lately it's been enjoying a well deserved period of prominence with Chardonnay proving to be one of its most successful grape varieties. Indeed, while quite modestly priced this wine bears favourable comparison with many more highly priced Burgundies. They use fruit from 50 year old vines which is fermented and aged in new oak foudres without filtering, racking, or the addition of sulphites. Essentially it's just left to mature in its own time with nature doing the rest. The outcome is wonderfully fresh, precise and tidy and is a great example of a wine where the fruit, minerality and subtle oak all sit in a satisfying harmony.

It makes a perfect aperitif, and for food pairing it's made to go with stuff fresh from the sea - a generous basket of fruits de mer being just the thing.