My summer wine… tastes like the Vivanterre wine! September is in full swing, yes, so why not induldge your taste buds with a good sip of a sun-drenched delight? The Orange Contact SGS is exactly that. But first, about the company: Vivanterre is a natural wine produced in the Auvergne region of France by Patrick Bouju and Justine Loiseau, and founded by Rosie and Max Assoulin, with the support of renowned sommelier Cedric Nicaise. Using organically and biodynamically farmed grapes, vinified using natural processes, and untouched by any fining, filtering, or added sulfites, Vivanterre reflects the “Living Earth” from which it comes. Introduced by mutual friends, the Vivanterre team – the new-wave wine-makers! – came together with the intention to create a delicious natural wine using sustainable practices. The collaborative spans the creative worlds, with a mix of wine experts and novices, who came together to create a wine that is truly a product of shared perspectives.

This time, I’ve tried the amazingly refreshing Orange Contact. It’s a heavenly blend of Gewurztraminer, Sylvaner and Sauvignon Blanc. The Sauvignon Blanc grapes come from the Touraine-Oisly sub-appellation of the Loire Valley, from a vineyard managed by Benjamin Delobel. The vineyard started organic conversion in 2013. The grapes come from 60-year-old vines planted in sandy soils that are rich in minerals with calcium, flint and clay. They were destemmed and saw three weeks of maceration with pigeage, aged in stainless steel. Meanwhile, the Gewurztraminer grapes come from the village of Heiligenstein in Alsace and are picked from 35-year-old vines, planted on clay and blue slate. The whole clusters were then placed directly into stainless steel vats for two weeks of skin maceration, foot trodden, then racked into amphorae. The vineyards are farmed by the Goepp Family. The Sylvaner grapes also come from Alsace, from a vineyard located in the village of Rosheim, that is rich in limestone, with 60-year-old vines. The Sylvaner comes from the vineyards of the Dreyer Family. The Sylvaner grapes were pressed, and the juice was added to the Gewurztraminer, which was macerating on its skins. There was no fining, filtering, or SO2 added during any phase of winemaking. Wines were aged until May 2021, when blending took place, just before bottling. The harvesting, wine making, and elevage was done by Bouju and Loiseau.

There are three more blends available – White MSM, White Petnat PRS and Gamay MVB (tried it out few months ago!)

Discover the world of Vivanterre here and follow them on Instagram. In Poland, Natural Rascal stocks the Vivanterre selection.