Pierre Cotton: to be young and gifted, in all simplicity.
10h00. Arrival of the fine team Petites Caves in Odenas, on Mont Brouilly(Beaujolais), at Pierre Cotton and Marine Bonnet. The weather is very nice, the vine, omnipresent here, offers a tender, spring green as far as the eye can see. The landscape is magnificent, even "if the weather is too good to see the Alps in the background" (an expression often heard in the area).
" Ah, I've got 10:01 on my watch, guys, you're really late! "says Pierre Cotton, with a big smile and a touch of local accent. The tone is set, the atmosphere will be simple and friendly.
Simple and convivial, certainly, but rich and complex as far as the natural wines we are going to taste are concerned. And exciting and original as far as certain plots of vines are concerned, which our guests will make us discover.
We follow Pierre and protect ourselves with pleasure from the heat; direction the magnificent underground cellar of the Cottons !
Ideal cellar for wine tastings and explanations!
We start tasting all the new wines from Winery Cotton: Vin de France, Beaujolais, Brouilly, Côte-de-Brouilly, whites, reds... Two hours looking at each other with each glass of natural wine tasted, with a smile on the corner and a sparkling eye. Wow, what diversity, what complexity, what pleasure these wines offer! And to think that some people only know Beaujolais on the (often bad) 3rd Thursday in November!
Cut like a blacksmith, very clear and educational in his comments, Pierre Cotton explains to us that the Beaujolais benefits from an extraordinary diversity of terroirs. Within a few metres, the vines draw from clay-limestone soil, granite soil or schist... among others. In short, an exciting mini-course in geological history. We understand better by listening to the diversity of aromas that pass through our glasses.
Exclusive vintage: a divine surprise.
And then - we're also here for that - our youngster winemaker makes us taste " something " that he would " absolutely love to have us taste, for your idea of exclusivity Petites Caves ". He takes out of his little barrel a very clear red juice. We taste... it's fresh, fruity, original and very interesting in the end. An absolute summer pleasure! Some would say it's an absolute trap in front of a barbecue with friends... In short, we love it.
And Pierre Cotton to explain. " I made a mistake. I left half a barrel of red gamay in the corner. And I inadvertently filled it with white chardonnay... and I exclaimed, "m.... what a c....! " As it turned out,this unintentional and unintended blend quickly became a very nice juice. what do you think? "We confirm ! And let's quickly validate the fact that, with the Cotton-Bonnets, we have tasted the first exclusive vintage for Petites Caves. When it's good, healthy, and original, it's for us ! About 300 bottles aside. Paf, thank you Pierrot, and bravo for this superb "nonsense" !
Quiet, birds, we're shooting!
Come on, let's do it again. In the furnace of this end of May, we wedge our host on a chair, in the middle of a dodger, in the courtyard of this pretty family farm. And here we go for a question-and-answer game, under the watchful and professional eye of Grégoire, our videographer of the day. How do you convince a nature winemaker as passionate as Pierre Cotton to give you short, concise answers... when he has so much to tell? Complicated. And the laughing fools? Cut during editing, too bad.
I won't tell you here what Pierre told us. The online video on our site or on social networks will be much more enjoyable to watch. Have a good viewing!
Well-deserved break.
To our great joy, Pierre and Marine invite us to a "picnic no way" break. No way, à la Beaujolaise, there are numerous, tasty and varied delicatessen products. A magnificent cheese platter, fresh fruit... and of course a dozen bottles from the estate! Only nature, of course. A real fresh summer feast on which we rush, discussing a thousand things with them. How pleasant they are, our beautiful couple of hosts! And this time, no question of spitting out the contents of our glasses. Vin Diouu that's good, all that!
Vines, straw and men.
Once our coffee has been swallowed, Pierre Cotton and Marine Bonnet, as fine connoisseurs of nature and vines, invite us to go up to one of their plots. Halfway up the slope of Mont Brouilly, a pleasant breeze makes us forget the blazing sun for a few moments. And here we are, all astonished, in front of impeccable vines where not a square centimetre of earth can be seen. The ground is indeed entirely covered with straw!
On the amused advice of winemaker, we plunge our hand into the bottom of these 10 or 15 cm of mulch and... surprise, we touch a fresh and wet ground! Pierre explains: " I've been trying this process for several years on this plot. The straw gradually feeds the soil below and prevents weeds from growing. "I look at the plot with incredulous eyes and it ' s confirmed that there are very few weeds. "And every year, I renew the straw I bought from a friend; it is at the same time the cheapest weed killer and fertilizer in the world! ».
We're over the moon. What a great job. There are only winegrowers like Pierre and Marine, passionate about nature, close to the living to try things like this!
Breathtaking view of Mont Brouilly.
We leave and thank our kind hosts. They are going to take advantage of this opportunity to rest for a few minutes (they have been up since 5.30 am, to avoid working in the vineyards in the heat...!).
We're going our own way. A short interview with Tom, our sommelier. Petites Caves...face the camera. The latter tells us all the good things he has been thinking for years about Pierre Cotton and his Beaujolais vintages. And hop, we climb a few hundred more meters and end up with a photo and video session at the drone. On one side, we guess the Alps, in the fog of good weather, with the Saône plain in the foreground. On the other, the Haut Beaujolais (Morgon, Fleurie, Juliénas, Régnié...), its green and wine-growing mountains. What a beautiful panorama! What a beautiful day! What a beautiful job!
