Dominique Andiran ‘Le Ruminant des Vignes’
It’s crazy how many people come to natural wine due to a severe illness - although maybe it shouldn’t be considering how the industry typlically grow grapes and what’s in conventional wine but I digress! Resuming regular programing:
Like a surprising number of us in the natural wine world - Dominique came to natural wine through a hospital stay. In a previous life, he was a ski and sailing instructor but while helping his uncle (who mostly sold his grapes), he became deathly ill. You see, he had been spraying one of his uncle’s vineyards with one of the many poisons allowed in vineyards when he had an adverse reaction and had to be hospitalized. Nothing like a hospital stay to help one decide to either “stop growing grapes or do it differently.” Obv, his family agreed so diving into organics and natural winemaking became a family project. Like all our winemakers, Dominique rejects all chemicals / pesticides / herbicides etc. in the vineyard - no additives in the cellar. And lucky us, now he’s making incredible, often irreverent wines that push boundaries all around the Gascony region of southwestern France. From primarily white grapes like Chardonnay, Colombard, Gros Manseng, Petit Manseng, Muscadelle, Ugni Blanc with a smidge of reds like Savagnin Rose, Cabernet Franc and Tannat just for fun-sys. If you’ve had any other Dominique Andiran wines you know he’s often pushing back on AOC rules of France - who notoriously tells winemakers to pour out bottles or rip up vines that don’t fall in line with their area’s appellation - but he refuses to conform and instead sticks by his principles - his visions for a chemical free world where good wine is everywhere! You know how much we love that at Molly’s!
My friends, the ‘Le Ruminant des Vignes’ is a glorious gateway to the world of oxidative whites (to the world of Jura and Sherry and flor!). Nutty and round yet so nuanced and delicate. Round but not sweet, with a glorious, tart acidity that freshens it all up. And maybe a little herbaceous? Basically rich and electric AF. It’s coaxing you to take another sip and explore a little deeper with a finish - a flavor just lingers and lingers. Also it only gets better by being open - no lie, we had it open for almost a month at the shop and it was just as good on day 1 and it was on day 29 (when I absolutely had to drink the last sip cuz wtf? how can a wine that good be in the fridge for that long?! F’ the experiment)
The name comes from horse-like fossils found in one of Dominique’s vineyards. The drawing made by students of a local university who studied the fossils and imagined what the animal looked like - viola - the animal is now featured on the label. 100% Gros Manseng - this beauty undergoes a really long and slow fermentation over a couple months and is then aged in barrel. Dominique doesn’t top off for long periods (if at all) and the magic flor forms. And it’s that flor that allows in just the right amount of oxygen to create an oxidative style.
What is flor you ask? Well, lemme tell you - it is a veil (aka a thin layer) of indigenous yeast cells that forms on top of biologically aged wines. Most often discussed in sherry production, it is a kind of Ivory coloured, wrinkled and waxy layer that sorta looks like foam, can be thick - even up to two centimeters - and forms over wine. This magical, natural occurrence protects the wine from air contact and since it grows naturally it creates a perfect protective layer for these crazy, delicious wines (and sherries!)
I invite you to stretch your palate - your perceived idea of white wine - give this incredible wine a chance! It may not be a all down in one bottle, beach wine but you can have a glass every day for a month or longer so it is a great opportunity to expand your palate, stretch your imagination and begin your journey into oxidative wines!
*Side note: the first time we tasted this at the shop, we were all like “YES! This is delicious. Give me more please!” And then the amazing Jason tells us, “Oh and by the way…this has been open for over a week in my garage.” WTF?!! And mind blown! Magic isn’t something we can quantify so let’s just thank the gods and be grateful for what magic makes this wine last and last and last (trust me it ain’t preservatives). It stays incredibly delicious. A little less pressure to drink it all in one night, but don’t let me stop you!
