News

2024 Spring Portfolio Tastings - Trade & Press

2024 Spring Portfolio Tastings - Trade & Press

March and Spring are fast approaching, the excitement is mounting,

We are celebrating 25 years and have some unmissable events coming very soon,

 Our Trade and Press 25th Spring Portfolio Tastings are on the first week of March,

Expect a fireworks of Le Caveau’s most relevant & best bottles!

 

 Dublin:

Spring Portfolio Tasting

Monday 4th March, 10.30 to 5.30pm

Fallon and Byrne, Exchequer Street, Dublin 2 D02 RY63

 

Cork:

Spring Portfolio Tasting

Wednesday 6thMarch, 10.30 to 5.30pm

The Apple Market, 13 Patrick Street, Cork T12 DH51

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Judith Beck visits Ireland

Judith Beck visits Ireland

We are so happy to have Judith Beck visiting our shores on March 20th and 21st, 

Judith’s wines are a real hit in Ireland, and it will be fantastic to listen to her stories while sipping her beautiful wines. We have 4 events lined up:

Here are Judith's events:

 

Dublin:

Judith Beck Masterclass, Trade & Press

Wednesday 20th March, 2.30 to 4.30pm

Hens Teeth, Blackpitts, Dublin 8 – D08A9FD

Free gig, must be booked !

Contact: Fiona Cashin fiona@lecaveau.ie or Colm Douglas colmdouglas@lecaveau.ie

 

Judith Beck Public Wine Dinner

Wednesday 20th March, 19.30

The Fumbally Café, Fumbally Lane, Dublin 8 – D08 HFF2

Book directly with venue: 01 529 8732 – Price TBA

 

 

Cork:

Judith Beck Masterclass, Trade & Press

Thursday 21st March, 2.30 to 4.30pm

L’Atitude Wine Bar*, 1 Union Quay, Cork – T12 DY75

*(If numbers are too large, we will move the venue to the Apple Market Cork,

we will confirm the day before)

Free gig, must be booked !

Contact: Colm McCan colm@lecaveau.ie

 

Judith Beck Public Wine Event

Thursday 21st March, 19.30

L’Atitude Wine Bar, 1 Union Quay, Cork – T12 DY75

Book directly with venue: info@latitude51.ie  – Price TBA - SOLD OUT!

 

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Christmas 2023 and New Year 2024 Deliveries Schedule

Dear Customer,

As we approach the busy Christmas season, we would like to inform you about our pre-Christmas and pre-New Year order deadlines.

 

WEBSITE ORDERS

Last orders for guaranteed delivery before Christmas is Wednesday 20th December, 10 AM

Orders received after that time will be processed and while most will be delivered pre-Christmas, others maybe delivered on January 3rd.

 

* * * *

 

TRADE CUSTOMERS

Last orders for Dublin Deliveries

Last Orders Received                                              Delivered on                         

Before 2.30 PM Thursday 21st December              Friday 22nd December

Before 12 Midday Thursday 28th December          Friday 29th December  

 

Last orders for Country Deliveries

Last Orders Received                                            Delivered on

Before 11 AM Wednesday December 20th           December 21st/ 22nd 

   

No Country delivery service between Christmas and New Year

Normal Trade delivery service will resume from January 2nd 2024

 

Trade Order Deadlines

As December approaches, we fully appreciate just how busy things will become for all of our customers.  This will, however, also be reflected in a significant increase in the number of orders coming our way.  With this in mind, we would ask that you please place your orders (and any subsequent additions) as far in advance of your order deadline as time permits.

 

Trade Delivery Times

Our delivery company will be doing their very best to deliver all orders within your preferred delivery windows.  However, if there is any way that you might be able to help alleviate some of the added pressure on them by extending your usual delivery times, preferably by confirming an additional afternoon delivery window, we would be very grateful. In the event that you do receive your delivery outside your scheduled times, we would kindly ask that you do try to accommodate it if at all possible.

If you have any queries regarding this, please do not hesitate to contact our office orders@lecaveau.ie or your Account Manager for more information.

 

* * * *

 

We would like to thank all of our customers for your continued support and we wish you all a healthy and prosperous 2024

 

With very best wishes,

 

The Team at Le Caveau

 

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Announcement: Le Caveau Retail moves to online only

Announcement: Le Caveau Retail moves to online only

After 24 years at the Market Yard, Kilkenny our bricks and mortar wine shop has closed on Friday 30th June. Our wines remain available to the public via our website.

This development will enable us to concentrate our efforts on the wholesale distribution of our wines to the trade and to make improvements to our online store lecaveau.ie

Of course, this decision wasn't an easy one, as all these years spent in Kilkenny have been so rewarding, meeting lots of amazing customers. We had the pleasure of looking after the wine side of so many happy occasions, christenings, communions, weddings etc.. we will miss the warmth and wit, the endless chats and the support we received.

But Le Caveau needs to move with time - shopping habits are changing and the recent developments and future plans for the Market Yard, Kilkenny simply don't suit the day to day running of a wine shop.

Paper Gift Vouchers remain valid. They can be transferred to online Gift Cards. Simply email us with your voucher number, the amount and date of issue and we will transfer the value to an online version and email it to you. You can redeem the value against an online order.

 

Thanking you once again for your support,

Pascal, Geraldine, Charles and Margaret

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Chat, stories and natural wine tasting with Dónal Gallagher - Ballymaloe MayFair 2023

Chat, stories and natural wine tasting with Dónal Gallagher - Ballymaloe MayFair 2023

A Saturday to remember!

It was a real privilege to share the stage with Dónal Gallagher, listening to stories about his brother, the legendary Rory Gallagher touring the World.

Colm McCan and I tried to illustrate some of the countries / regions visited with a wine and the people behind it.

A full house at the Drinks Theatre, reminding us of the very best days at Litfest, the lovely and laid back Ballymaloe Grainstore May Fair Festival delivered the perfect platform for this memorable evening. 

One for the books as Colm put it.

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Antoine Petitprez, Uliz visits Ireland

Antoine Petitprez, Uliz visits Ireland

Tastings with New Wave Burgundy producer - Antoine Petitprez (Uliz)

 

We are thrilled to announce 2 Masterclasses
hosted by Burgundy wizard, Antoine Petitprez.

Antoine is visiting Ireland over Easter with his family,
we nabbed him for 2 unmissable events.

Antoine will talk about Biodynamic viticulture, his consultancy work,
he will show 8 wines. These were stand outs at our recent portfolio tastings.

 

Cork:

(Cancelled due to storm Noa which delayed Antoine's ferry! We are checking to see if this can be re-programmed on Wednesday 19th April -  Watch this space or follow Le Caveau on Instagram for updates)

Wednesday 12th April - 1.30 to 3pm
L’Atitude 51 - 1 Union Quay - Cork City
Trade & Press

- - - - 

Dublin:

Thursday 13th April - 3 to 5pm
Frank’s - Camden Street Lower - Dublin 2
Trade & Press

 

Antoine Petitprez:

The wines of Antoine Petitprez are for connoisseurs. Most of his modest production is sold to multi-Michelin-starred restaurants in France, and yet for more than a decade he has largely gone unnoticed in the rest of the world.

An impressive achievement considering how quickly rumours generally spread about anything related to Burgundy.

But Antoine has never made a big deal out of marketing his wines. He is a hardcore terroir nerd with a scientific background, and he spends all his time in the vineyard.


In his modest cellar in the heart of Pommard, he vinifies his wines with great attention. Whole clusters, gentle extraction, spontaneous fermentation, only old casks, zero fining or filtration and zero added sulphur.

The wines of Antoine Petitprez are light and elegant, yet profoundly concentrated while trembling with energy.

Antoine studied oenology in Beaune and Lyon, during which he was responsible for a research program on the moon's effects on wines and vines. He created an association with the likes of Meo Camuzet, Domaine JJ Confuron, Alain Meunier, Liger Bel Air, Bruno Clavelier and Domaine Dujac to repeat experimentations in the vineyards and in the cellar.

 

He’s part of a new generation in Burgundy, taking the best of tradition, soil and winemaking to tell a story of where the wines were made.


The fruit sourcing for Uliz is quite original and utterly efficient: Antoine develops mutually beneficial partnerships by consulting with organic farmers in exchange for their agreement to sell him grapes. His strategic networking allows him to acquire superior fruit contracts with these growers and provides him with an openness to understand their vineyard practices throughout every aspect of harvest.

All of Antoine’s farmers plow for good biological activity in the soil and practice organic and biodynamic farming methods.

 

“Bespoke” is a word that has been ruined by overuse, but I’ll use it nevertheless to describe the wines of Antoine Petitprez. Most of what little wine he makes ends up in Michelin-starred restaurants in France, leaving the rest of us to fight over the tiny amount that’s exported.
This begs the question: Is it worth the effort?

Well, it sure was for me.

Uliz is a venture focused first and foremost on sustainable viticulture: Antoine Petitprez consults with organic and biodynamic growers in exchange for fruit from those vineyards for his wines. Impeccably crafted and resolutely natural, his are tiny-production, much-buzzed-about Burgundies— and they live up to the hype!”

Ian Cauble, Master Sommelier, SOMM Select

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Vins de Copains 2023

Vins de Copains 2023

It's happening again!

The trio of specialist importers - Brian's wines, Le Caveau and Veraison - is hitting the road in May and will showcase 36 newly arrived, beautiful and exciting natural wines.

Check below where you can catch us:

 

Dublin:

Note Bar. Bistro. Bureau - Fenian Street, Dublin 2

Monday 15th May - Trade & Press: 3 to 7pm 
(Public: 5 to 7pm, pre-book your tickets with the venue)

 

Cork:

L’Atitude 51 - Union Quay, Cork City

Tuesday 16th May - Trade & Press: 3 to 7pm 
(Public: 5 to 7pm, pre-book your tickets with the venue)

 

 

Galway:

The Universal - William Street, Galway

Thursday 18th May - Trade & Press: 3 to 7pm 
(Public: 5 to 7pm, pre-book your tickets with the venue)

 

 

See you all there!

 

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Christmas 2022 & New Year Opening / Delivery times

Christmas 2022 & New Year Opening / Delivery times

Our opening times and delivery arrangements for Christmas 2022 and New Year are as follow:

1/ KILKENNY SHOP

1st December – 6th December       
Normal opening hours (Wed – Sat 11.00 to 3.30pm)

Wednesday 7th December             11.00 to 3.30 pm
Thursday 8th December                11.00 to 3.30 pm
Friday 9th December                     11.00  to 3.30 pm
Saturday 10th December               11.00 to 3.30 pm
Sunday 11th December                  Closed

Monday 12th December                11.00 to 3.30 pm

Tuesday 13th December                11.00  to  3.30 pm
Wednesday 14th December           11.00 to  3.30 pm
Thursday15th December                10.30 to  5.00 pm
Friday 16th December                    10.30  to 5.00 pm
Saturday 17th December                10.30  to 5.00 pm
Sunday 18th December                  12.30  to 5.00 pm

Monday 19th December                10.30 to 5.00 pm
Tuesday 20th December                10.30 to 5.00 pm
Wednesday 21st December          10.30 to 5.00 pm                 
Thursday 22nd December             10.30 to 5.00 pm
Friday 23rd December                  10.30 to 5.00 pm
Saturday 24th December              10.30 to 3.00 pm
Sunday 25th December               Closed

Monday 26th December              Closed
Tuesday 27th December              Closed
Wednesday 28th December        Closed
Thursday 29th December             Closed
Friday 30th December                 Closed
Saturday 31st January 2021        Closed
 
Le Caveau (wine shop) will close for Annual Holidays on Christmas Day
and will re-open on Wednesday 11th January 2023.

2/ WEBSITE ORDERS - Christmas / New Year Cut Off Times

Last order for guaranteed delivery before Christmas must be placed before 11 AM on Friday 16th December

Orders placed after this time will be processed, and while some might be delivered before Christmas, others will be delivered on January 12/13th 2023

 

3/ TRADE ORDERS - Christmas / New Year Cut Off Times 

Last orders for Dublin Deliveries

Last Orders Received                                             Delivered on                         

Before 2.30 PM December 22nd                            December 23rd

Before 12 Midday December 29th                          December 30th  

 

Last orders for Country Deliveries

Last Orders Received                                            Delivered on

Before 11 AM Tuesday December 20th               December 21st/ 22nd    

No Country delivery service between Christmas and New Year

 

Normal delivery service will resume on January 3rd 2023

                                         - - - - - - - - - -

We would like to thank you all, our Customers and friends, for your support over the years,
Wishing you a peaceful and relaxing Christmas and a very Happy New Year 2023.

 

Pascal and Le Caveau Team

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Beaujolais Nouveau Day, drink Natural

Beaujolais Nouveau Day, drink Natural

The third Thursday of November marks the official release of the year's Beaujolais Nouveau. Typically harvested in September, the wine undergo fermentation and after few weeks left to settle, it is bottled and sent around the World, for people to celebrate and get a glimpse of what the year's vintage is like.

For the last 10 years, Le Caveau has focused in bringing those 'New Wave' or 'Natural' Nouveau, made by producers who work their land the organic way and most importantly, do not add anything to their wines. 

When you open a bottle of Nouveau by Jean Foillard, Rémi Dufaître or Jean-Claude Lapalu (amongst others), what you get is simply what's described above, pure Gamay juice, spontaneously fermented, settled and bottled without additives. They are the polar opposite of mass-produced Nouveau, in their appearance, taste and the philosophy behind it.

Parties and events around these Natural Nouveau are organised around the World, Paris 11th arrondissement being the epicentre. Ireland's wine bars, wine shops, restaurant and bars scene will be very active today and this evening.

If you want to see for yourself, what the fuss is all about, make your way to any of the venues listed below, and grab a glass or a bottle!

Happy Beaujolais Nouveau Day!

Green Man Wines
L'Atitude 51
Loose Canon
Station to Station
Baggot Street
Le Caveau 
Brindle
Blackrock cellars
Paradiso
Ventry Post Office
Cass and Co
Frank's
Ballymaloe House
Nash 19
Savoir Faire
Rift Coffee Limerick
Saint-Francis Kinsale 
Universal Galway
Glass Curtain
Nell's Cork 
McGuinness Dundalk 
Ard Bia Galway
Good Day Deli
World Wide Wines
Fallon Byrne Wine store
Trinity Cellars
the Wine Pair
Lennox Street Café
Bridge Bar Restaurant
Cheese Press Ennystimon
Kalbos Skibbereen 
Pop up Wine Shop Grain Store Ballymaloe
O'Driscoll, Ballintemple
Curran Retailer Galway
Dodi Café Lahinch
Lilith Wines
Pete's Provisions 
11 Deli 
Allottment wines
Nude Wine Co.
Mardagh Howth
Sweeney's D3 
NOTE Wine Bar
Whelehan's Wines 
The Fumbally 
AVOCA Rahtcoole 
AVOCA Ballsbridge 
AVOCA Monkstown 
AVOCA Malahide 
Mitchell's Glasthule 
Mitchell's CHQ
Drink stores Stonybatter
The Corkscrew
Thai House Dalkey
Dooks Fethard 
Greenwich Cork 
Bradley's Cork 
Mc Curtain Cellars 
Manning's Ballylickey 
WunderKaffee Cork 
Pilgrims Rosscarberry 
The Lane Cheese & Wine Galway 
Mosaic Ballydehob 
Luna Killarney 
51 Cornmarket Cork 
Fota Island Resort 
Lignum Galway
Stranfield house

 

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Vins de Copains, Natural wine tasting, Poster based on Michel Tolmer

Vins de Copains

Natural wine tastings with 3 indie importers
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Real Wine Month Ireland is back!

Real Wine Month Ireland is back!

MAY IS REAL WINE MONTH

After 2 years of absence, May 2022 will mark the return of Real Wine Month, the time we celebrate Organic, Biodynamic and Natural wine.

Look out for restaurants, wine bars, bars, cafés and wine shops around the Country who promote these wines. There will be many events organised and we will publish the list below.

WHAT IS REAL WINE?

‘Real wine’ is a term embracing wines that are made organically, biodynamically and naturally. By no means precise nor prescriptive it serves chiefly to highlight growers who work with minimal mediation, ideally to obtain the purest articulation of terroir, fruit and vintage.

All great wine begins in the vineyard and is ultimately the result of sensitive farming. It is important that growers farm sustainably and with a sense of environmental responsibility, ensuring the natural balance and health of the vineyard. The juice from the resultant grapes should then ideally, be guided to the bottle with the fewest manipulations in order to create a vital and singular – rather than an homogenous – product. This sympathetic interpretation and transformation of nature’s gifts lies at the heart of what makes a wine “real.”

EVENTS

Check for price, tickets, info with the venues

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5th May: Jura Night

A unique opportunity to taste 'Unicorn wines' from Jura - Expect the rarest and finest:  Kenjiro Kagami (Domaine des Miroirs), Overnoy-Houillon, Jean-Francois Ganevat, Domaine Saint-Pierre, Domaine Labet..

L'Atitude 51 Cork

---

9th May: Bojo & Hotdogs

Beaujolais from superstars Foillard, Métras etc.. & Hotdogs (with Gubbeen sausages!) 

Table Wine, Dublin

---

16th, 17th, 18th May: Vins de Copains Tastings

3 indie importers, specialising in Natural Wines join forces to pour 36 of their best, in an informal, fun and wine fair style!

Veraison - Le Caveau - Brian's Wines

16th May: Note Wine Bar, Dublin

17th May: L'Atitude 51, Cork

18th May: The Universal, Galway

---

22nd, 23rd May: Real Wine Fair, London

The World's most amazing Natural wine fair returns to Tobacco Docks, London

The Real Wine Fair

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28th May: Natural Wine Masterclass

What is Natural Wine? What does it tastes like? How do you recognise it? Join this fun, interactive and educational Masterclass.

L'Atitude 51, Cork

 

Date TBA: Mentors of Natural Wine

Tasting the wines of Vignerons who have mentored/influenced the current wave of Natural wine producers.

Green Man Wines, Terenure, Dublin 6

---

PARTICIPANTS IN IRELAND: 

 

Co. Clare:

This is it, Ennistymon

 

Co. Cork

Ballymaloe House, Shanagarry

Bradley's, Cork

Crawford Gallery Café, Cork

The Blackpig, Kinsale

Da Mirco, Cork

Dunmore House, Clonakilty

Garden Shop at Ballymaloe Cookery School

Glass Curtain, Cork

Good Day Deli, Cork

Ichigo Ichie, Cork

L'Atitude 51, Cork

Levi's Bar, Ballydehob

Liss Ard Estate, Clonakilty

McCurtain Street Wine Cellar, Cork

Nash 19, Cork

Nell's Wine Bar, Cork

Nico's, Schull

O'Driscoll's, Douglas

Paradiso, Cork

Pilgrim's, Rosscarbery

Pop up Wine Shop at the Grainstores, Shanagarry

Sage, Midleton

Saint-Francis Provisions, Kinsale

Sonflour, Cork

 

Co. Donegal:

Bridge Bar and Restaurant, Ramelton

 

Dublin:

Baggot Street Wines, Dublin 2

Bastible, Dublin 2

Commons Room, Trinity College, Dublin 2

Etto, Dublin 2

Fallon and Byrne, Dublin 2

Fish Shop, Dublin 7

Frank’s, Dublin 2

Fumbally, Dublin 8

Grano, Dublin 8

Green Man Wine, Terenure

King Sitric, Howth

Lilith Wines, Dublin 7

Loose Canon, Dublin 2

Martin's Off Licence, Fairview, Dublin 3

Note Wine Bar, Dublin 2

Table Wine, Dublin 2

Two Pups Café, Dublin 8

Uno Mas, Dublin 2

Woodruff, Stepaside

 

Co: Galway:

Ard Bia, Galway

Inis Meain Restaurant, Inis Meain 

Kai, Galway

The Lamplight, Clifden

Re_Galway, Salthill

Tartare, Galway

The Universal, Galway

 

Co. Kerry:

Watchhouse, Valentia Island

Sheen Falls Lodge, Kenmare

 

Co. Kilkenny:

Aran Bakery, Kilkenny

The Grapevine, Kilkenny

Le Caveau, Kilkenny

 

Co. Louth:

MacGuinness Wine Merchants, Dundalk

 

Co. Tipperary:

Dooks Fine Food, Fethard

 

Co. Waterford

Cass and Co, Dungarvan

World Wide Wines, Waterford

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Jean-Francois Ganevat, Jura

Jean-Francois Ganevat

The sale of Domaine Jean-Francois Ganevat to Russian billionaire Alexander Pumpyansky, son of steel magnate Dmitri Pumpyansky in September 2021 has raised questions amongst natural wine lovers and the wine world in general.

On November 3rd, 2021, 2 months after the sale and 5 months before the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, Jean-Francois released a statement to clarify/explain his decision to sell his vineyard to Alexander Pumpyansky: (translated into English by Aaron Ayscough)

 

" Dear friends,

Suppositions on the subject of the sale of the estate have sprouted on the internet, via social networks and others, for several weeks.

Anne and myself are little attached to what’s said of us, but certain concerns voiced by lovely people encountered in the past at salons, at the estate, or elsewhere - always in the presence of good wine - haven’t left us entirely indifferent. It’s particularly for these close friends, these visiting friends, and these enthusiasts, always respectful of of our work, that I wish to present, in the name of Anne and myself, our project.

I’m fifty-two years old, I’m at a period in my life when I wish to pass things on. I’m not old, but the metier of a peasant vigneron weighs upon a human. If something were to happen to me tomorrow, to sell the vineyards wouldn’t be a problem, but to find people capable of continuing the work we’ve done, for the négociant business as well as at the estate, would be one. A good succession is prepared well in advance. Through this project of succession, I’m also very vigilant to not disturb the wine market in the Jura.

For several years, I’ve often been approached to cede the estate, but I’ve never been convinced by the projects that were proposed to us. But yes, in September 2021, we sold our estate to Alexander Pumpiansky. I’ve heard it said here and there that he’s of Russian origin, sometimes as if it is something to be ashamed of! It’s true that he’s Russian, but insofar as it concerns me, that’s not how I define a human being. He lives near us and above all his human virtues, his knowledge of wine, and knowledge of vignerons convinced me. He became a friend thanks to his simplicity, his passion, and his humility.

Since 2008, Alexander is the owner of Domaine Prieuré Saint-Jean de Bébian in the Languedoc, where he enacted a titanic work in the vines and in the cellar. He knows the business, he worked to convert the estate to organics and biodynamics, and this, believe me, is not nothing.

What also appealed to me in Alexander is the project for the estate: he first asked me to above all not change anything, then together we put ourselves to planning it. We’re going to refurbish the buildings of the estate to offer better-adapted spaces. We’re going to concentrate ourselves on the improvement of our vinification methods through the pursuit of long aging periods and the integration of a supplementary patina. This is something that has danced in my head for a long time.

Through this project, the goal for me is to pursue this beautiful adventure. My attachments are here, in the vines. I will continue to be there everyday for the estate and the négociant business as they exist today. There are numerous micro-parcels and tiny cuvées, it’s indispensable that I transmit my savoir-faire: this will take several years. Concerning the life of the estate, the employees stay, as do my sister Anne and her daughter Clémence.

Dear friends, in practice nothing will change, the passion is intact. But at fifty-two years of age, it’s the occasion for me to concentrate on what I love to do: vinify! To free my spirit and, who knows, open myself up to other opportunities, such as that of vinifying in other regions. The project is above all for me the most beautiful way to assure the succession of our family’s work to someone in whom I have full confidence.

Jean-François "

 

Five months later, the addition of Dmitri and Alexander Pumpyansky on the EU sanction list on March 9th 2022, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine,  has affected the situation at the estate.

Here is an article written and published by Aaron Ayscough on his blog 'Not drinking poison':

'Among the fourteen Russian businessmen added to the EU sanctions list yesterday, in response to Vladimir Putin’s war of aggression in Ukraine, was the billionaire Dmitry Pumpyansky, owner of the steel pipe manufacturer TMK. Pumpyansky, through investments run by his son, Alexander Pumpyansky, is also the owner, since September 2021, of the celebrated Jura natural wine estate Domaine Ganevat.

As wine lovers in general, and admirers of the Ganevats in particular, how complicit are we for supporting a business owned by a Russian oligarch?

As Branko Milanovic, a professor at the City University of New York's Graduate Center, writing for The Globalist in 2019, put it: “The Putin oligarchs are billionaires who serve at the discretion of the state.”

Anne Ganevat, reached by email yesterday, struck a note of perseverance, assuring me that the sanctions would not affect work at the estate.

“We have a sincere relationship with Alexander, and like him, we’re against this war. We’re heartbroken about this situation,” she says. “But after all, there are other estates that have sold to Russian investors, we’re not the only one.”

Indeed, many of the deep-pocketed Russian investors behind the purchase of EU wine estates in recent years are lately appearing on, or very near, sanctions lists.

FROM CHAMPAGNE TO BORDEAUX TO PROVENCE

The billionaire Russian wine tycoon Boris Titov made news in 2010 with a purchase of the champagne brand Château d’Avize from LVMH, along with 2.5 hectares in the Côte des Blancs. Four years later, the project was in a state of abandon - partly because Titov had newly expanded duties at home, as the Presidential Commissioner for Entrepreneur’s Rights, a position to which he was named by Putin himself. (Titov is also the official supplier of wine to the Kremlin.)

Last July, the Russian billionaire Andrey Filatov acquired a 9-hectare property in Saint Emilion, the Château La Grace Dieu des Prieurs. A noted patron of the arts and of chess, Filatov was awarded the Medal of the Order “For Merit to the Fatherland” by Prime Minister Dmitri Medvedev in 2016.

And just eight days before Putin's forces invaded Ukraine, Brad Pitt sued Angelina Jolie for going behind his back to sell her stake in the former couple’s Provence rosé estate Château Mireval to Russian billionaire Yuri Shefler’s SPI Group.

For what it’s worth, Yuri Shefler is exiled and has been fighting the Russian government in courts for many years over rights to SPI group’s Stolichnaya vodka brand.

HOSTAGES OR HOSTAGE-TAKERS?

Similarly, before pouring any Côtes du Jura down the drain, we should acknowledge that the subject of sanctions is rather foggy.

Significant parts of the list of Russian oligarchs sanctioned in Donald Trump's 2017 Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (in which Pumpyansky figured) turned out to have been copied from a Forbes magazine list. Criticizing the haphazard nature of that round of sanctions in Bloomberg, the Russian editor Leonid Bershidsky wrote, “The hostages are on the list along with those who keep them hostage.”

Notably, in response to the increased sanctions announced yesterday, the Swedish economist Anders Åslund, author of Russia’s Crony Capitalism, tweeted: “I am not happy to see the Pumpyansky family [and two others] sanctioned. These are real self-made Russian businessmen in the private sector. They should not be sanctioned just because they have to attend Putin’s annual oligarch meetings.”

As New Yorker journalist and Putin biographer Masha Gessen observed, in a 2014 New York Times column entitled “The Myth of the Russian Oligarchs”: for oligarchs in Russia, “Giving up any pretense of independent political action has remained a condition for staying wealthy and safe.”

In the face of humanitarian catastrophe in Ukraine, can we forgive the complicity of the Russian oligarchy on account of their paradoxical political powerlessness?

THE SCALE OF EXPOSURE

Last week, before sanctions on the Pumpyansky family were announced, I noted that Dmitry Pumpyansky had figured among the Russian businessmen (including twelve other billionaires) summoned by Putin for briefing at the Kremlin on February 24th at the outset of the Ukraine invasion.

Seeking perspective on the issue, I got in touch with his son, thirty-five-year-old Alexander Pumpyansky. (Subscribers can read the full interview here.)

Pumpyansky fils was born in Yekaterinburg, and moved at age sixteen to Switzerland, where he studied business management and economics. He has resided in Switzerland ever since, managing his family’s investment portfolio outside Russia, which also includes the Languedoc estate Prieuré Saint Jean de Bébian, which he and his father purchased in 2008.

Reached by phone in Geneva last week - before yesterday’s round of sanctions - Pumpyansky acknowledged that the sanctions had already been “impactful in terms of public relations.”

“Unfortunately, we hear a lot of criticism,” he said. “And I can understand, what with the present situation. The geopolitical climate is not easy.”

Pumpyansky confirmed that Domaine Ganevat was a family purchase in conjunction with his father. He explained his father’s presence at the February 24th Kremlin briefing as a business necessity. The family’s group employs 85’000 people in Russia. It is ineluctably exposed to the consequences of the war.

“I have a lot of Ukrainian friends, who live still there. And we have lots of Ukrainians who work in our company in Russia. It’s unavoidable that we’ll be together, and we must work together, especially now, when there are political conflicts, because if there’s hatred created on a human level, it’s much more complicated,” said Pumpyansky. “We’re doing everything we can to prevent that.”

Throughout the 2010s, many in the Jura wine scene used to make good-natured jokes about Jean-François Ganevat’s sizable platoon of interns, who, it was rumored, he’d employ to do things like de-stem trousseau with nail scissors. The Pumpyanskys responsibilities as an employer are on a different scale. Domaine Ganevat is among the least of their liabilities, when it comes to exposure to Putin’s war of aggression in Ukraine.

But Pumpyansky is sensitive to the concerns of fellow natural wine lovers.

“All of Ganevat’s professional clients can be reassured,” he says. “I adore what they do, I adore Fan-Fan, and I'll do everything I can perpetuate the spirit of the estate - and to prevent the present events from impacting the estate.”

Aaron Ayscough, Not Drinking Poison

 

On March 12th 2022, we heard the news, reported by local newspaper Le Progrès, that the Pumpyansky family are selling their shares in Ganevat estate (and the ones in Prieuré St-Jean de Bébian)

here is the article from Le Progrès, published on March 12th 2022:

Translated as best as I could:

The Pumpyansky family has been added on the EU sanction list. Six months after purchasing the famous Rotalier-based Estate, they now need to sell it. A massive set-back for Jean-Francois Ganevat, who is still closely linked to the estate.

On March 9th, the EU commission extended their black list of businessmen and oligarch involved in key sector of the Russian economy, freezing their assets on the continent. In this list, aimed at sanctioning Moscow, can be found Russian billionaire Dmitri Pumpyansky, as well as his son, Alexander. Both are the new owners, since September 2021, of celebrated Domaine Ganevat in Rotalier, Jura. This announcement has raised questions about the future and viability of Domaine Ganevat, a family estate, passed on from generations of the same family since 1650, until Jean-Francois agreed on the sale less than 6 months ago.

We contacted Alexander Pumpyansky at his office in Geneva, where he resides with his family for the last 20 years. He announced that he was selling his assets in the French vineyards he purchased. Domaine Ganevat and also Domaine Prieure de St-Jean de Bebian in Languedoc, bought in 2008.

'Our 2 French vineyards won't be concerned by these sanctions because we are selling our interests and shares in them. I purchased Domaine Ganevat because I fell in love with the work conducted there by Jean-Francois. We had a shared goal to develop it further. Unfortunately, I could have never imagined we would find ourselves in such a situation. As a mark of friendship with Jean-Francois, I prefer to protect the future of the Domaine, by selling my shares and cutting all ties with it.' said Alexander Pumpyansky, shocked by the EU sanctions.

Jean-Francois Ganevat is also saddened and shocked to say the least, six months after selling his 'baby' to ensure and preserve its future, the 52 year-old vigneron wasn't expecting such a poisoned chalice.

' We were so happy to have found the right person. And now, we are totally surprised by this announcement. We didn't decide to sell the estate to Alexander out of the blue, we picked him because he is truly passionate, there was a real connection. Now, we have to wait and see how the situation evolves. It is all so sudden. I will not let the estate nor our employees down, I have entire trust in them. I will do everything in my power to ensure Domaine Ganevat continues to exist.' concedes a shaken JF Ganevat.

Following the publication of an article on social media by free-lance blogger Aaron Ayscough of 'Not drinking poison', few calls to boycott the wines of Ganevat have started to appear.

'We are entering a very delicate period; all of this will more than likely affect sales, but the situation is well-above my head, I am vigneron and don't do politics.' concedes Jean-Francois Ganevat

We expect an official announcement from the estate in the next few days, in the meantime, the future of this very famous Jura Domaine seems suspended.

A.B, Le Progrès

 

And here is the original article in French:

Domaine Ganevat : le nouveau propriétaire russe va devoir vendre

Par Arnaud BASTION - 12 mars 2022 à 06:15 - Le Progrès

La famille Pumpyansky figure sur la liste noire de l’Union européenne visant à sanctionner la Russie pour l’invasion de l’Ukraine. Six mois après avoir fait l’acquisition du célèbre domaine situé à Rotalier, elle est contrainte de s’en défaire. Un énorme coup dur pour Jean-François Ganevat qui restait étroitement associé à l’exploitation.

L’invasion de l’ Ukraine par la Russie de Vladimir Poutine aura des conséquences jusque dans notre paisible département.

Le 9 mars, la Commission européenne a élargi sa liste noire d’hommes d’affaires et oligarques impliqués dans des secteurs clé de l’économie russe, dont les avoirs sur le continent sont gelés. Dans cette liste, visant à sanctionner Moscou, on retrouve le milliardaire Dmitry Pumpyansky, ainsi que son fils Alexander, propriétaires depuis septembre 2021 du célèbre domaine Ganevat à Rotalier. Une annonce qui soulève bon nombre de questions quant à la pérennité d’un domaine familial, qui s’est transmis de père en fils depuis 1650, jusqu’à ce que Jean-François Ganevat ne le cède il y a moins de six mois.

Contacté à son bureau situé à Genève, ville où il réside depuis 20 ans, Alexander Pumpyansky, a annoncé au Progrès qu’il allait se désolidariser des domaines viticoles français dont il a fait l’acquisition. Le domaine Ganevat, donc, mais aussi celui du Prieuré Saint-Jean de Bébian, à Pézenas dans le Languedoc, acheté en 2008.

« Céder les parts pour protéger le domaine »

« Les domaines français ne seront pas concernés par ces sanctions puisque notre famille est en train de céder les parts. J’ai acheté le domaine Ganevat car j’étais amoureux du travail fourni par Jean-François. Nous avions une volonté commune de le développer encore davantage. Malheureusement, je n’ai jamais pensé que nous nous retrouverions dans une telle situation. Donc en preuve de mon amitié avec Jean-François, je préfère protéger l’avenir du domaine en cédant les parts pour ne plus être lié à celui-ci », lâche Alexander Pumpyansky, qui se dit abattu par ces sanctions européennes.

Jean-François Ganevat sous le choc

Abattu, Jean-François Ganevat l’est tout autant. Voire plus. À peine six mois après avoir vendu son « bébé » pour en assurer l’avenir , le vigneron de 52 ans ne s’attendait certainement pas à un tel cadeau empoisonné. « On était content d’avoir trouvé la bonne personne. Mais là, avec cette annonce, nous sommes tombés des nues. Cela nous rend malade. Mais nous n’avions pas choisi cet homme par hasard. C’est un vrai passionné. Il correspondait à mon état d’esprit. Là, on attend de voir comment tout cela va évoluer. Car c’est assez soudain. Mais je ne laisserai pas tomber le domaine et les salariés en qui j’ai toute confiance. Je vais faire tout ce qui est possible pour que le domaine Ganevat continue d’exister », relate un Jean-François Ganevat encore sous le choc de la nouvelle.

Sur les réseaux sociaux, notamment suite à la publication Twitter d’un rédacteur free-lance, Aaron Ayscough, qui tient le blog Not drinking poison, on peut déjà lire plusieurs posts qui appellent au boycott des vins estampillés Ganevat.

« Nous entrons dans une période qui risque d’être délicate pour nous. Tout cela va probablement se ressentir sur les ventes. Mais la situation me dépasse complètement. Je suis vigneron et je ne fais pas de politique », concède Jean-François Ganevat.

Une annonce officielle, de la part du domaine, devrait être faite dans les prochains jours. Pour l’heure, l’avenir de ce fameux vignoble jurassien reste en suspens.

A.B, Le Progrès "

 

On March 16th, French TV channel - France 3 Bourgogne- Franche-Comté -  reported that Jean-François Ganevat and Benoit Pontenier had jointly purchased back both Domaine Ganevat and Prieuré de Saint-Jean de Bébian, the other French vineyard owned by Alexander Pumpyansky.

Both estates are now back in the hands of their original owners, Jean-François Ganevat is once again the owner of Domaine Ganevat and Benoit Pontenier the one of Prieuré de Saint-Jean de Bébian.

* * *

Visit, tasting and dinner at Domaine Ganevat, Saturday 19th March 2022:

Visiting Jean-Francois and his sister Anne Ganevat is always a highlight of the year for me; My last visit there was in 2019 so I was really looking forward to seeing them again, especially after their recent roller coaster of emotions due to the above.

This trip (as my previous 4) had been organised by long-time friend Eric Narioo of Les Caves de Pyrene and Vino di Anna fame, our travelling pals were Soif London Head Chef Simon Barnett and Manager Riccardo Parvoli. And a joyous travelling quatuor it proved to be.

Around 60 happy punters from the 4 corners of the World were there and already half way through the tasting when we arrived, importers, cavistes, restaurant / wine bar owners, winemakers etc.. but we did manage to catch up.

The 2020 reds we tasted showcased the generosity of the vintage, ripe, fruit-filled, super pleasant for the Negoce side, all of this plus a tense mineral streak and added structure for the Domaine ones. Overall some super stars in the making.

The whites were mostly 2018, they had just been bottled, after 4 years spent in their respective Vats / Barrels / Foudres. The reason for this very long elevage is 2018 was a rich, solar year and Ganevat felt the extra time spent in vats have given the wine a chance to re-gain in minerality, tension and acidity.

It was astonishing to taste the resulting wines, while all have that backbone of richness and ripeness, characteristic of the vintage, they are monuments of balance, tension and focus. More precision and intensity will come with age in bottle, but drinking them now was sheer pleasure.

So far only 2 ‘Domaine’ whites have been bottled, Varrons, a newly purchased vineyard and Chamois du Paradis, JF will keep the others in vats for another few months/ to a year, until whenever he is happy with the final result.

As he mentioned ‘if I had bottled them in 2019/2020, I would have made rich, unbalanced whites' (on a side note, the next day we visited Christian Binner another giant in the Natural Wine World, in Alsace, who applied the same long elevage to his recent hot vintages, for a very similar result)

Rare are the vignerons working in this way today, with so much commitment and true dedication to make the best possible wine, whatever it takes and at whatever cost to them. I see them as true artisans, craftsmen, they see themselves as simply doing the right thing. 

The implications in terms of space, investment and cashflow are huge, just try to imagine the labyrinth that is Ganevat’s cuverie, countless vats, barrels, amphoraes and foudres of every shape and form, full of wine from different vintages, waiting for bottling time, for their final assemblage, waiting till they're ready.

About the man himself, I think the best way to describe Jean-Francois Ganevat, beside being one of the most gifted winemaker of his generation, is a man larger than life and generous. Generosity with all his visitors, serving gargantuesque meals, opening countless amount of bottles, magnums, jeroboams of his most precious wines. Jean-Francois and Anne have been doing this for years, and certainly did last Saturday,

Generosity also with his peers, helping a lot of young vignerons to set up or make the switch to biodynamic farming and natural winemaking – Kenjiro Kagami amongst the most famous of his protégé.

Yep, visiting Ganevat is always a special moment.

 Pascal

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