Wines from Fruitiere Vinicole Arbois with David Pillot
Thanks to an enthusiastic David Pillot who regaled us with anecdotes and experiences from the Jura. This is a range that shows off proud traditions, ancient varieties, unique expression, and a lot of love.
Most are wines to dabble with. All are wines to be tried. Autumn and winter are the seasons to drink them, often with game or poultry and always the local Comte cheese. Never forget that these whites, Chardonnay apart, will drink as well as the reds with both.
A blend of the three varieties (Pinot Noir, Poulsard and Trousseau), simply made and lightly oaked to reflect the special location of these vineyards. Wide, orange rim and translucent in appearance. Open, aromatic, sweet raspberry and rhubarb nose with a pinch of demerara. Beautifully ripe, juicy, red berry notes with an edge of wild strawberry. A big mouthful for what is a light style of red wine.
As one of the more ancient varieties, Poulsard is capricious. Vital characteristics such as high yields and disease resistance have not been bred into Poulsard as for so many more modern cultivars. There’s a certain austerity about the style too; more woodland floor, artichoke and cep than fresh fruit and bright acidity! This is a sensational vintage. The wine is dark, deep and worth ruminating on. Perhaps better as a blending variety but it’s worth finding out if you Love Poulsard!
This has aged evenly, showing a clear, orange, brown hue and only a touch of volatility; a hint of nut oil or linseed heralds what I simply described as the smell of Christmas. Dried orange peel, cloves, cranberry and mincemeat. Again, the attack is a touch savoury before that rich taste of Christmas fills the mid palate. A lovely experience this.
Cremant de Jura Brut NV Cuvee Bethanie - £25.00
A palate cleanser between the whites and reds. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir with a twist; in the dosage there is a nip of Savagnin that has been matured under flor (see below). That gives a brief but distinctive sensation of fino sherry before the fullness and freshness of a classic Cremant take over. This is a wonderful wine and rightly one of the most popular in the range.
Arbois Chardonnay 2022 - £19.99
It’s that top vintage again and this a Chardonnay to have a go at if you’d like a rare experience of what the grape tastes like with little interference from oak fermentation, ageing, inoculated yeasts or other wine making tricks. There’s a blob of soft citrus in the mid palate and a natural expression of the Jura. David tells us it ages like a Meursault. Uncanny! I’m putting a bottle in the cellar.
Perhaps the flagship of the winery this is 60% Chardonnay (per the above) and 40% flor aged Savagnin (per the below!). Whilst the Savagnin ages in barrel with its snowy cover of yeast, Chardonnay is kept cool, and on its fine lees in tanks. That’s a long time to be held in store like this and, believe it or not, the resulting wine is still youthful and could do with another year in bottle to meld together! The surround sound is mushroom and savoury sauce; the soft Chardonnay centre is scrummy.
Arbois Savagnin 2020 - £29.99
As David said, we are in the realms of fancy here with the last two examples aged entirely under a skin of flor. ‘Sous voile’ (‘under a sail’ or as fino sherry is aged) is the French term that we don’t often hear, as these are almost the only, traditional French wines made this way! Like Poulsard, Savagnin is an old variety. It tends to ripen early but, with thick skins can be left hanging to increase sugars. Crucially, acids are often retained making this perfect for flor ageing. Residual sugars feed the flor while acids keep the wine fresh. Sherry growers may wish they had the benefit of such strong acidity in their Palomino fruit. So, it’s a sherry like fine white and, love it or not, it’s a wonderful tradition that we are proud to preserve.
Caveau des Jacobins Vin Jaune 2017 - £50.00
Taking it to the ultimate level, Vin Jaune is aged for a minimum of six years and so begins to lose an angel’s share, 38% to be precise. That is why the bottle is filled with the remaining 62% in a 62cl bottle! Plenty of notes from the crowd on this one; honeycomb, smoked cheese, flowers, uplifting yet with astounding depth, almost sweet and sour with a ripe mid palate.
James Handford, Master of Wine, 4th November 2025.
