Anne et Jean-Francois Ganevat Savagnin Cotes du Jura Montferrand 2018

Montferrand is the same storied lieu-dit that produces Ganevat’s celebrated Chardonnay bottling, but here it’s Savagnin that gets to speak. The old vines are planted on the grey Lias marl and shimmering, iridescent marl near Château-Chalon and Voiteur, terroir Jean-François and Anne consider among the finest in the Jura. Unlike the region’s famous Vin Jaune, this Savagnin is vinified ouillé, topped up regularly to keep air at bay, for more than two years in old barrels, following the same unwaveringly simple rulebook as everything else in the range: no additions, indigenous yeasts only, no fining, no filtration, and no added sulphur. It’s a style built to show Savagnin’s full complexity without tipping into the fully oxidative character the grape is known for.

The result is a Savagnin of real gravity: a bouquet dominated by walnut, almond and hazelnut, layered with peach, poached pear and apricot, and a distinct pastry-like richness that builds with air. On the palate a powerful, gunflint minerality runs through a long, tightly structured frame, generous and full without ever losing its grip, finishing on a savoury, saline note that lingers