Denis et Didier Berthollier St-Anthelme Roussanne 2016
  • Roussanne
  • Vegan-Friendly
  • Dry
  • Medium Bodied
  • 750ml
  • 13.5% alc./vol

Denis et Didier Berthollier St-Anthelme Roussanne 2016

Savoie, France
Regular price $48.95per bottle ($293.70per case)
6 bottles per case
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Full & Nutty

The Bertholliers come from a long wine-making tradition; growers, owners and winemakers for several generations dating back to 1850. Today, brothers Denis and Didier own several parcels on the southernmost and steepest parts of the Savoie hills whose abrupt slopes, too difficult to work on, had been abandoned by their forefathers at the beginning of the 20th century. But this is the terrain where the grapes thrive. In Chignin, wines made from the Rhône Roussanne grape are called Chignin-Bergeron.

This one, St Anthelme, is barrique aged, inspired by Château de Beaucastel's Châteauneuf du Pape. On the glass, St. Anthelme has a pale gold colour. On the nose, it is a bit reductive at first, but after a few minutes it opens up to a fragrance of green apples, citrus fruits and a special mineral character that gives a hint of its Alpine origins. On the palate, it is dry, with high acidity and full bodied, because of its 10 months of ageing in barrels. It has some nutty notes with hints of hazelnut and toasty aromas of cedar wood.

Fish in sauce or smoked, white meats, foie gras, goat or sheep's milk cheese.

About the Winery

Denis et Didier Berthollier

The Bertholliers are of strong wine-making tradition; growers, owners and winemakers for several generations. Brothers Denis and Didier cultivate 10 hectares of vines on the southern slopes of the Savoyard in Chignin, located ten kilometers from Chambery. Their great-grandfather, Louis Tissot, founded the farm in 1850.

Their grandfather Marius maintained a mix of farming and livestock, in addition to vines. His daughter Monique then took over and married Denis and Didier’s father, Alexis Berthollier, himself the son of winemaker. They abandoned polyculture to devote their activity fully to the vines. Alexis father, Victor Berthollier, who was winemaker at Aprement, was probably the first winemaker to bottle Savoyard wine for the mass-market in 1970! Denis and Didier harvest, vinify and do the bottling themselves at the domain. They have eliminated the use of insecticides and fungicides in all their vines and ceased the use of weed-killer since 2008, enabling grass to grow in the rocky slope vineyards. They use only naturally occurring, indigenous yeasts and very minimal SO2. Their wines have a pureness and finesse among the best of the Savoy region.