For everyone that initially enters the Jura wine region, it's immediately apparent that you've stumbled into somewhere special. Tiny towns frozen in time with impossibly charming, rustic cellars filled with the most humble and passionate vignerons. Everything is done a little differently here, but the pure magic of the region in addition to the uniquely delicious wines made stood out immensely. Our time spent with Michel Gahier in 2019 was one of these special visits.

Based in Montigny les Arsures, widely known as the home and capital of Trousseau, the Gahier family has been in the Jura since 1525. When we first arrived, it was clear that linguistic differences might impede communication, so Michel thoughtfully called over a neighbor to translate for us. Cerebral and soft-spoken, he began to explain his philosophy.

Sometimes known as the protegée of famed Jura producer Jacques Puffeney, it was clear after just a few exchanges that Michel was a singular winemaker in his own right. Throughout his 35+ vintages, Gahier's philosophy remains the same: nothing added and nothing taken away. He harvests and vinifies all wines parcel by parcel. Each wine is ultimately derived exclusively from a single vineyard site. The white wines are layered and complex, while his reds are fresh, mineral-driven, and energetic.

These are extraordinary wines, made according to the longstanding traditions of one of the world's most unique wine regions.

What importer Rosenthal Wine Merchant has to say about this wine...

Always the greatest of Michel’s white wines, “La Fauquette” (from soils of marne bleu) spends four years in 400-liter barrels without being topped up. Despite the marked influence of the voile, however, it is the most elegant of Gahier’s whites: viscerally salty and rich, but with the finesse of great Corton-Charlemagne. Called Melon, the vines are of the local variety of Chardonnay known as “Melon à Queue Rouge”, a white grape the skin color of which bleeds towards red as it approaches the stem.