Originally from Burgundy, working 9-5 (no dolly, no, please...) for producers in the Grand Cru villages, Romuald Valot also somehow managed to find time - and endurance - during the past decade to forge an exciting path in the remote hills of the Beaujolais. With this refuge now becoming a more permanent fixture, this has allowed him to pursue his own vision for natural wines, which continue to represent fantastic value from this region.
Trained by his father in Hautes Côtes de Nuits, Romuald tries to recreate the essence of land and terroir in the vineyard as well as in the bottle, and he would rather have a beautiful plot classified as Vin de France than a soulless Cru wine.
Disillusioned with the use of chemicals in the vineyards, Romuald decamped to Beaujolais in 2013, picking up three hectares of 100-year-old vines at some of the highest terrain in the region. Not bad going. Since then he’s acquired a further eight hectares elsewhere in Beaujolais.
His vines are planted over granite, at five hundred metres above sea level. They are completely isolated, allowing him to be alone with nature, to pursue winemaking undisturbed. Romuald’s commitment to organic agriculture is serious, and some parcels he doesn’t plough or even prune. In the cellar his vinification is simple, filling cuves with whole bunches, infusing for two weeks before slowly pressing and moving them to old barrels for elévage.
Romuald’s winemaking is comparatively simple. Yet, whilst his approach to farming might be radical, his silky, nuanced wines are an exercise in purity and within the context of Beaujolais, which we've written about before in a blog, they are totally unique bottlings. Across his portfolio range, the styles vary by village, but at there core they are all extremely bright and elegant, but at the same time have lots of ageing potential. Simply sublime, and there is plenty here to convert the Beaujolais naysayers!
