Portrait / Julien Peyras: an inspired winemaker in Aspiran.
Julien Peyras has been working in the vineyard since 2007 in Aspiran in the Hérault region of France. He works 8 hectares in the purest respect for nature, of course...
Julien Peyras' father, who comes from a family of winegrowers, woke up one morning with the desire to find his roots. He then took the little family with him to Aspiran, in the Hérault. In 2007, Julien imposed his vision. He wants to make wine with a permanent concern for respecting nature and refusing any chemical intervention. He simply wants to be in line with his convictions. However, the first vintage had its share of problems. Of course, there is hesitation and research. Natural wine is an apprenticeship and must be made with a perfect knowledge of the soil, the climate, the vines... Thanks to the advice of the Belhasen family, from Winery Fontedicto, Julien Peyras learns quickly and builds a solid farming background that motivates him to go even further with his 8 hectares. In the vineyard, the work begins in the autumn, the vines must be fed with manure or compost, then there is the long period of pruning... almost six months, all winter... until the beginning of spring when the first care begins. Then comes the ploughing (done with a caterpillar, "the most beautiful gift I've ever received in my life" he says), the maintenance of the soil according to the climate, the moon, the feeling and the vegetative development. A period when Julien Peyras spends a lot of time in his vineyards observing, listening and smelling, for a better understanding. Then comes the summer, the heat, the waiting for the ripening to finally pick the fruit. This is done in the morning, in the cool of the day; the grapes are cut with a spinet and transported to the family cellar.
The harvest? A special moment that he describes well: " Arriving in the vineyard at dawn, smelling through the mist the perfume of the ripe grapes, welcoming the morning dew that freezes our sleeping bodies, finding the unparalleled pleasure of looking, touching, tasting, cutting the heavy bunches, the 10 o' clock snack, the bursts of laughter, the jokes that fly, the untimely smearing, the discovery ofa nest with a beautiful blue-green egg, the sun that cooks our aching shoulders, the happiness of the shared meal, all this makes this harvest a great moment of conviviality and the expected reward fora year of hard work. » Then comes the transformation of the grapes into wine! The time of the pressing where the tastes and colours are at the rendezvous. The juices are resting in oak barrels for a period of improvement (maturation) while awaiting bottling and the opportunity to taste them.