Vin Jaune 2016

Vin Jaune 2016 is a natural wine crafted by Caveau du Val de l'Amour in the Jura region in France. This white wine is made with Savagnin grapes, which have aged for 6 years and 3 months in barrels not topped up, developing a layer of yeast on the top which protects the wine from seeing too much oxygen to spoil, but allows enough in to develop an oxidative presence. This process is known as Sous Voille aging (under the veil, referring to the veil of yeast on top) and interestingly to note, there is a lot of misinformation about how thick a perfect veil is, as many photos show a few cm thick.. but actually, it really is a veil coating on the surface, small islands connected together rather than a blanket.

This Vin Jaune from Sylvain Jacquot, who makes wine in the small village of Cramans north of Arbois (more as a tiny passion project in his garage winery, only recently started exporting outside the region) is exceptional, with a classic nutty expression and rich depth perfect for aging, which is really where such wines shine the most.