Producers

Alessandro Martelli Suvereto, Tuscany, Italy Incontri lies in the municipaliry of Suvereto in Tuscany and was founded in 1967 by Martellino Martelli, the grandfather of the current wine maker Alessandro Martelli. The estate was transformed into a winery in the 80's by Alessandro’s parents, Renzo and Marcella, before being taken over by Alessandro in 2000. After taking over Alessandro planted new vineyards, restored the olive groves and built the current cellar. The estate comprises 12 hectares, 6 of which are vineyards, 2 are olive groves, 3 are farming fields and 1 is uncultivated land. Incontri translates to encounter, to which Alessandro says: “When smelling the soil and the air, you smell the essence of the land, full of rosemary, camomile and dandelions, this is the land of scents and that land is my wine”. Alessandro is an ambitious winemaker. He looks at his land with tenderness and openness. He practices permaculture on the estate, which furthermore has zero carbon footprint. The soil consists of equal parts sand, clay and silt allowing for a great potential of growth. Varieties that are planted are typical to the region: Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Vermentino and Trebbiano. Incontri wines are certified organic, vegan and without added sulphites. The wines are only released when they are really ready. Hence the older vintages.

Farid Yahimi Ammerschwihr, Alsace, France Farid Yahimi has been working with natural wine for over 20 years already and is one of the founders of the Association des Vins Naturals (2005). After years spent experimenting with natural fermentation in his garage it was only in 2017 and after the recommendation of Christian Binner (also known as the founder of Les Vins Pirouettes) that he started to make wine himself. The wines of Farid are a mixture of wild and pure wines for which he uses grapes from different regions. He produces his wines, under the name of Sons of Wine, in an old cellar in Beblenheim in the Alsace. From this cellar he makes spectacular and authentic wines with grapes grown in the area but also from the vines he owns in Côte de Toul in the Lorraine and the Beaujolais. Futhermore he collects grapes from the Languedoc, the Loire and even from Spain. Yahimi’s wines are unique and creative and greatly supported and respected throughout the world of wine. He never releases a faulty wine, as he always makes sure the problems stay in the cellar, without any additions but just the addition of time, he makes sure you get wines that are ready to drink.

Ton Rimbau Penedès, Spain

Joachim Roque Banyuls, Roussillon, France Winemaker Joachim Roque was raised in the hills surrounding Collioure in the Roussillon, in one of the last coastal villages of France before entering Spain. The landscape is desert-like, arid, steep and dusty with a view of the mediteranean in the distance. It is known as a place where vines are hardest to cultivate and yield only very few grapes. Roque has been a member of Les 9 Caves since 2014. Les 9 Caves is a cooperative of independent winemakers in Banyuls that exchange ideas and equipment. Together with three other winemakers from this cooperative he also makes wines under the name of Tutti Frutti Ananas, which we also import. It is possible to visit Les 9 Caves, that also has a beautiful restaurant, ran by people from Amsterdam, making it even more worth the trip. Roque works his 8,5 hectares of land organically and as much as possible by hand. He puts a lot of emphasis on respecting the existing vegetation and its ecosystem in the already difficult climate of this region. Considering the intense heatwaves and dry spells that regularly occur, Roque manages to create beautifully fresh and living wines. Their balance and character make his wines a thrilling expression of the Côtes Catalanes. Since last year Joachim has moved away from Les 9 caves and built his own domaine, in between his vineyards. Together with his wife they created some new cuvées, put new labels on the wines and started afresh. Some wines to look out for if you love Southern French heavier red, that are stable for by the glass, but our favorite is his rose, Esperanza, which is amazing for the summer now.

José Carvalho Moreiro Banyuls, France

Romain Chapuis Pommard, Burgundy, France In Côte de Beaune, the heart of Pommard, brothers Romain and Jean-Guillaume Chapuis started their winery in 2009. In the years prior, Romain has been following his passion for wine in Lebanon and Australia where he learned from multiple winemakers in different cellars. Following this he has spent 3 years working together with Philippe Pacalet, cousin of Marcel Lapierre. Romain and Jean-Guillaume combined their skills and passion for gastronomy, wine and terroir into making wine, something they had been dreaming of for years. Their method consists of buying grapes from various farmers in the area as well as tending to their own vineyards. However, they select the grapes meticulously: composition and condition of the soils, exposure, age of the vines and variety are all considered with the utmost care. The wines are made with minimal intervention, always fermenting with indigenous yeasts, never filtered en only adding sulphites in a couple of wines when absolutely necessary. They differentiate between their zero zero natural wines such as the Rosé, Pet Nat and the Haute Côtes de Beaune and wonderful, more classical wines such as the Chorey Les Beaune, Savigny and even a Corton Charlemagne (available on request). It is definitely worth trying these wines, especially for the non-funky natural wine enthusiast!

Andrew & Emma Beaune, Burgundy, France

Manuel, Jose, Joachim and Kiko Banyuls, Roussillon, France Tutti Frutti Ananas is a collaboration between Manuel of Vinyer de la Ruca, Zé Tafé of La Cave des Nomades, Joachim of Domaine Carterole and ‘Chicco’ who assists them in the cave. Unfortunately Zé left now, but the wines we have are still made in collaboration with him. Having all worked together in the cooperative Les 9 Caves these winemakers set out on a mission to make wines they love to drink themselves. This collaboration takes place right on the shores of the Mediterranean in Banyuls-sur-mer. They farm their vineyards organically with soils consisting of sand, slate and quartz near the sea as well as in the mountains in the area. As mentioned above, they work with the cooperative cellar in the centre of town Les 9 Caves. The wines are fermented and ripened in big concrete vats. Bottled young, these wines remain full of energy and life. Very limited every year and almost nowhere to get. These are some must grabs!

Luc Devot Montner, Roussillon, France Luc Devot has had many lives before discovering winemaking. Having been a chef for 7 years as well as a fisherman, a musician, a teacher and working in animation. He participated in his first harvest with Jean-Louis Tribouley, the man who introduced him to natural wine, and discovered his passion for it there. Devot trained under Loïc Roure from Domaine du Possible and he became a volunteer at the La Remise wine fair. Having worked in different vineyards for a while, Devot spent 3 years working with Philippe Wies from Domaine de la Petite Baigneuse. It was here that Devot realised he was made to be a winemaker. He produced his first wines in 2017 and now works 4 hectares of vines in Montner. His vines are situated in the rolling hills by the Pyrenees, where the soils consist of clay and limestone. Unfortunately there is one big problem in this area, the drought. It is one of the areas in Southern France that almost never sees rain. As you can see in his soil, that consists mostly of rocks and dry land. Nevertheless, he makes crazy juicy wines! Helped by his carbonique maceration techniques and the use of old barrels. Devot primarily works with Syrah, Grenache Noir, Mourvèdre, Lledoner Pelut and Grenache Gris. All his wines are unfiltered with as little additives as possible. The wines are light, easy to drink and full of flavour!