Balazu des Vaussieres

Tavel, Southern Rhone, France

Nadia and Christian Charmasson are based in Tavel, a strictly rosé appellation so all of their wines are 'hors-appellation,' even their rosé. They farm about 5.5 hectares split between the Tavel and Lirac regions and are fully focused on typical local grape varieties (Grenache, Mourvedre, Carignan, Syrah, Clairette, Marsanne, Roussane, etc etc). 

They are a husband and wife team who do everything together and are entirely committed to biodynamic viticulture. They take it one step further and refuse to use copper, with very minimal amounts of sulphur used in the vines, only if the vintage requires it. They primarily rely on essential oils and herbal preparations to maintain vine health. Interesting fact: they used to be certified by Demeter but left in 2013 as they felt they weren't strict enough.

'Balazu' is slang in local dialect for a troubadour and was Christian's grandfather's nickname, a name which he has also earned for himself being as he used to be a musician. Vaussieres is the name of their road, where the family estate has always resided (Chemin des Vaussieres), and where they tend to their oldest plot - a 95-yr old vineyard. 

The winemaking is as hands off as it gets - they own no barrels, everything is made in steel and fiberglass tanks where they let the wines take their time until they feel they are ready to be bottled and then eventually released for sale. The wines are often left untouched (even untasted) for years prior to racking.