Domaine Les Bottes Rouges LÉON Chardonnay 2023

LES BOTTES ROUGES LÉON CHARDONNAY 2023

Les Bottes Rouges is the winemaking project of Jean-Baptiste Ménigoz and Florien Kleine Snuverink, located in Abergement-le-Petit, in the French Jura region. Jean-Baptiste entered the world of wine after working as an educator and training alongside one of the Jura's leading figures, Stéphane Tissot. In 2011, he launched his own project and, since 2016, has shared the management of the estate with Florien.

They currently cultivate several hectares of vineyards in the Arbois and Côtes du Jura areas, following organic principles and a philosophy of minimal intervention. Their wines seek to clearly express the personality of the soils and grape varieties of the Jura, combining naturalness, energy, and precision.

Philosophy

At Les Bottes Rouges, we work with respect for the vineyard and natural cycles, avoiding unnecessary interventions both in the vineyard and in the winery. The grapes are harvested by hand, and fermentations take place using the native yeasts of the grapes and the surrounding environment.

This philosophy continues in the winery with minimal intervention winemaking techniques, aging in used oak barrels, and very little use of sulfites. The goal is not to impose a style, but to preserve the freshness, purity, and mineral expression that characterize Jura wines.

Winemaking, Vintage, Vineyard, and Variety

Léon 2023 is an Arbois made exclusively from Chardonnay grapes grown in clay-loam soils. The grapes are pressed directly, gently extracting their full potential without losing the freshness and delicacy characteristic of the variety.

Fermentation occurs naturally, and the wine undergoes extended aging in used oak barrels, primarily 500-liter tanks, for approximately 18 months. The use of aged oak adds texture and complexity without masking the fruit or the mineral expression of the Chardonnay.

The result is a white wine with a distinctly Jurassic character, where the fruit, tension, and mineral notes find a particularly elegant balance.

Tasting Notes

Appearance: Medium-intensity golden yellow, clean and bright.

Nose: Expressive and delicate, with aromas of ripe white fruit, yellow apple, and pear, accompanied by white flowers and subtle hints of chamomile. Mineral nuances and a pleasant saline sensation gradually emerge.

Palate: Fresh, taut, and very salivating. The fruit is integrated with a marked minerality and a fine texture, maintaining an extraordinary sense of balance. The acidity provides energy and length, leaving a persistent, clean, and slightly saline finish.

Pairings

Its freshness and mineral character make it an excellent companion to fish and seafood, especially white fish, trout, or shellfish. It also works magnificently with poultry in creamy preparations, fish dishes with delicate sauces, and, of course, with hard cheeses, where its tension and saline profile find a superb match. It is also a perfect wine to enjoy on its own, as an aperitif, allowing it to evolve slowly in the glass.

Léon 2023 perfectly embodies the personality of Les Bottes Rouges: a natural, precise, and energetic Chardonnay from Arbois, in which white fruit and floral notes blend with a pronounced mineral expression. An elegant and profound white wine, one of those wines that displays all its complexity without resorting to power.