Domaine de L'Octavin
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Country of Origin: France
Location: Arbois, Jura
People: Alice Bouvot, Owner & Winemaker
Viticulture: Certified Biodynamic
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Social Media:
Instagram: @octavin.alice.bouvot
Facebook: Alice Bouvot Facebook
Alice Bouvot is the proud proprietor of 5 hectares of vines in the Arbois region of the Jura. Alice started her domaine in 2005 with just 2 hectares and over the years have bought small plots and slowly increased their production. Some of our favorite winery visits are with Alice and her adorable sons. On top of her warmth, the vineyards are equally as vibrant. L’Octavin is now Demeter biodynamic certified and she works to convey this message to the fullest. Wild grasses, weeds, insects, and animals all have a place in their vines creating a true ecosystem that gives a deeper meaning to each glass of her wine.
Since 2009 all L’Octavin wines are "pur jus" (pure juice) with no additives whatsoever. The grapes are destemmed by hand and fermented without the use of SO2, cultured yeasts, or other additives. Most of the wines are fermented and aged in fiber glass or steel tanks, but only at the ambient temperature of the cave. Most of L’Octavin wines are made to reflect single plot expression. The Don Giovanni, for instance, is from a very old plot of Pinot Noir with some old Chardonnay vines as well, so the two grapes come together in the cuvée.
Background Information (from LeDom du Vin Blog)
"After graduating as a viticole engineer in Bordeaux and studying in Dijon to become oenologist, Alice Bouvot decided to go abroad to observe the types of wine that is produced there: California first, with renowned winemaker Aaron Pott in 2000, New Zealand and again in California at Pine Ridge in 2001; Vina Errazuriz in Chile in 2002 and then six months in California. Despite the accumulated wealth of all these encounters and experiences during these three years, Alice returned to France with the certainty that her life will be held in the Jura, this tiny region that does not exceed one percent of French vineyards. After a position of vineyard manager in the “Côte du Jura,” she decided to settle in Arbois with her cellar master, Charles Dagand. Charles Dagand learned and did his classes in Burgundy. After studying as a technician in oenology and viticulture, it worked with Mr. Galmard, as the technical director of the local cooperative “Fruitière Vinicole d'Arbois – Chateau Bethanie”. Alice enticed him in her adventure in 2004. A year later, they decide to create their own domain: OPUS VINUM, which has become the Domaine de L’Octavin."
Wine Advocate, 2012
"Alice Bouvot and Charles Dagand’s seven-acre, 7-year-old Domaine l’Octavin in Arbois is distinguished, among other things, by the special (and successful) attention to detail and vintage adaptation they lavish on highly-distinctive red wines – a majority of their production – as well as by their wines’ low alcohol levels and very reasonable prices. (Self-proclaimed natural methods and low sulfur elevage and bottlings alone scarcely serve to distinguish one among the top Jura establishments.) This couple, incidentally, associates most of their bottlings – not all of which I had time to sample – with characters from Mozart opera, whose names then appear on the labels, along with those of the relevant vineyards (often less prominently displayed). L’Octavin’s petillant naturel sparkler – a pure, subtly sweet Chardonnay of 10% alcohol labeled for the Les Peteux vineyard – is worth noting for having been, on the occasion of my visit, delightful, mingling juicy fresh apple and lemon with nut oils and ginger; but since this non-vintage bottling was not labeled with any lot designation, I follow standard Wine Advocate policy by not offering what would become a “forever green” tasting note and attendant rating."