SÉLÉNÉ
-
On a whim, we decided to drive south from Beaune to Blacé, a small village just south of Beaujolais’ most exalted crus. We had sent Sylvère Trichard, proprietor of Séléné, a message asking if we could come to visit. Despite being in the middle of harvest, he agreed to show us his vineyards and winery.
We pulled up to the sound of The Distillers echoing from a tinny speaker in his minimalist winery. We were greeted by a rag-tag team of punk rockers, including Sylvère himself, sporting his iconic denim overalls. Concrete tanks were filled with that vintage’s harvest, undergoing whole-cluster fermentation - semi-carbonic maceration ideal for his Gamay Noir grapes. Although he has four hectares planted on his property, he also buys some fruit from neighbours. His plot consists primarily of sandy clay over granite, the ideal combination for ethereal and filigreed wines.
-
He learnt his craft from Dominique Belluard in the Savoie and local legend Jean-Claude Lapalu. Although he’s not certified, he employs many of the biodynamic techniques he learned from his mentors. Vineyard and winery work is often done based on the moon's cycles, and he pursues biodiversity between the vines, including sheep and fruit trees.
After visiting some of the vineyards, we went back to the winery, where we tasted through the line-up. The wines were energetic, clean, and soulful. Drinking them next to the vines with ample saucisson sec and cheese couldn’t have been a better introduction - especially out of magnum, a format he’s appropriately biased towards.
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $35.00 (AB)
CSPC: 852496 (AB)
2022 CUVÉE DU PRINTEMPS
This cuvée is made from Gamay Noir Sylvère purchases from his neighbors within Beaujolais. The grapes are fermented as whole clusters in concrete tank for a couple of weeks before being pressed off. After an additional six-month élevage in concrete, the wine is bottled with minimal SO2. 13.5% ABV
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $39.00 (AB)
CSPC: 106437 (AB)
2022 BEAUJOLAIS PRIMEUR
This wine comes from Sylvère’s home block of vines in Blacé, just south of Brouilly. The sixty-year-old vines are planted in sandy pink granite and seem to provide the perfect base for a modern take on Beaujolais Nouveau. The grapes are fermented whole cluster in concrete tank for five days before being pressed off to finish fermentation. Essentially right after the wine is dry and through malolactic conversion, it is bottled with minimal SO2 (33 ppm). It is released young but is structured enough for long term ageing, something Sylvère does with a significant number of magnums. 14.5% ABV
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $39.00 (AB)
CSPC: 103854 (AB)
2022 BEAUJOLAIS-VILLAGES
Sylvère historically purchased these grapes from his best friend and neighbor, a mere stone’s throw across a gully from his home vineyard in Blacé. Tragically, he passed away, so they took over farming as a form of catharsis. The vineyard had been heavily neglected so restoring it to its former glory was a physical and emotional battle. The sixty-year-old vines are on typical sandy granite with a little clay. Whole clusters are fermented in concrete before the wine is pressed off into concrete and neutral barrel for élevage. 14% ABV
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $42.00 (AB)
CSPC: 867858 (AB)
2022 BEAUJOLAIS BLANC
Sylvère got his hands on a small Chardonnay vineyard five years ago and has been farming it organically ever since. Soils here are typical for southern Beaujolais, consisting of richer clay loam. The grapes are whole cluster pressed into concrete for fermentation and élevage. The wine is bottled unfined and unfiltered with 10ppm of SO2.
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $52.00 (AB)
CSPC: 106474 (AB)
2022 ROSÉ PET-NAT
This cuvée is made from Gamay Noir from 20- to 80-year-old vines in Beaujolais. A portion are an old teinturier cultivar called Gamay de Bouze, famous for its intense colour and flamboyance. The grapes are whole cluster pressed into concrete for fermentation. When the wine has just a touch of residual sugar remaining, the must is chilled, racked several times, and bottled to finish fermentation. It is disgorged by hand and released without any additional SO2. 12.5% ABV
