Patrick Bouju
Sein Pour Sein - 2018
8.00 / 10

Type
Red Still, Dry
Producer
Patrick Bouju
Vintage
2018
Location
France, Vin de Table
Grapes
Pinot Noir, Gamay
Alcohol
13.5
Sugar
0.5
Price
751 UAH
Cellar
N/A

Producer

Most of you should be already familiar with the legend of the natural wine movement from Auvergne. A former computer scientist (?), Patrick Bouju decided to throw the keyboard into oblivion (no connection with TES4) and replace it with farming equipment in 2003.

Domaine de La Bohème is his winery in Auvergne, located at an average altitude of 500 meters, spread over the best terroirs around his home that he could find: Egliseneuve-près-Billom, Billom, Lempdes, le Puy d’Anzelle, Corent. He cultivates old Gamay grape varieties from Auvergne (Gamay de Bouze, Gamay Fréau, Milefleurien). With an average age of a hundred years (some are pre-phylloxera), the roots draw deeply from the soil (basalt, limestone, clay, pozzolan) to give the wines of Domaine de la Bohème a unique character. To highlight the specificity of each terroir, Patrick vinifies his parcels separately.

Ivan Omelchenko with Patrick Bouju (wearing Vova Ulianov’s hat). Photo by Anna Zinchuk.

Patrick Bouju allows himself a little copper and sulfur and uses plant preparations (nettle, horsetail, comfrey, etc.) to prevent possible diseases. In the cellar, he uses no chemicals. There is no usage of SO2 during vinification or bottling.

Ratings

2021-09-02 - 8.00

So far all Bouju wines I tasted are powerful, overly young and not simple (in variety of meanings). This one is no exception. Ripe cherry, dark cherry, earthy hints, chocolate powder, white pepper, banana. All this leads me to Morgon or some neighbouring appellation, but nope! Tannic, astringent palate with highly volatile finish backed by black cherry. Definitely interesting and sophisticated wine. But so damn young! Decant unless you want to be washed away by a wave of hair spray! Then it becomes beautiful, by gaining medicinal herbs notes in the nose and cherry-vanilla-VA-chocolate flavours. Giving extra 1 for no apparent reason.