Glou Glou

Every week, I take you on a journey to discover an alcohol that smells of nature and sunshine, like a beautiful weed that offers us the best of the earth. Today, I’m talking about beer, and not just any beer: “B7 & 1 More ”

Don’t sell the bear… or kill it.
Because, apart from being my favorite animal, the bear is seriously endangered.

Glou-Glou is your rendezvous with natural wines from all over Europe, with forgotten grape varieties and ancestral winemaking methods brought up to date, healthy vintages to share with friends all day long.
Today, Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé are in the spotlight.

As I’m in the region for a few days, I’d like to take this opportunity to mention two prestigious Loire Valley appellations that face each other on either side of the Loire: Sancerre on the left and Pouilly Fumé on the right.
Sancerre produces reds and rosés from pinot noir, whites from sauvignon, Pouilly Fumé only whites from sauvignon.
Both appellations export all over the world, alas with a tendency to standardization and often exacerbated acidity.
Fortunately, there are a few rebellious winemakers who refuse this standardization. Let’s discover two of them, one in Sancerre, the other in Pouilly Fumé.

Since 2004,Sébastien Riffault has managed the 12 hectares of vines on the family estate in Sury-en-Vaux, on the road to Sancerre.
Biodynamic since 2007, Sébastien cultivates his vines in the traditional way, with the help of his mare Ophélia. The vines date back to his grandfather’s time, planted during the Second World War, and Sébastien continues the style of cultivation practised in Sancerre at that time, before the massive arrival of chemicals in the vineyards in the 1950s.

Sébastien’s vines can be recognized from afar because they are heavily planted with weeds, a practice which almost cost him the right to use the Sancerre appellation.
Indeed, the INAO (which regulates AOCs) stipulates that weeds must not exceed a certain height, as they could get into the harvesting machines and be mixed with the grapes.
As these vines are harvested solely by hand, the absurdity of these regulations is obvious.

In addition to his biodynamic viticulture, Sébastien is totally different from other winegrowers in the appellation in that he harvests late (around mid-October).
At this time of year, a large proportion of the grapes are affected by botrytis (noble rot), which gives candy-like aromas and a honey color to the wines.

This late-harvesting practice, common in the Sancerre region in the^1st half of the 20th century, has since been abandoned as it is difficult to control (risking the production of sweet wines, which is not the aim here).
Sébastien’s wines are aged for 2 years in stainless steel vats, followed by 1 year in old barrels.
The candied fruit and candy aromas resulting from the late harvest are subtly balanced by the acidity and minerality of the Sauvignon grape.

These perfectly “natural” Sauvignon cuvées bear Lithuanian names in honor of Sébastien’s companion, depending on the terroir: limestone – Akméniné (“made of stones”), Auksinis (“golden”) -, Kimmeridgian marl – Saulétas (“sunny”) – or flint – Skeveldra (“shard of stone”).

I tasted the cuvée Akméniné 2016: on the nose honey, candied fruit, a little chamomile, dried apricot, on the palate apple, apricot jam, lime and some floral notes, with great length on the palate. A truly unique and highly addictive wine.

Another rebel winemaker, Alexandre Bain, in Tracy-sur-Loire, on the Pouilly Fumé terroir on the right bank of the Loire, produces wines far removed from the region’s standards.

His domaine, created in 2007, has become famous for its highly aromatic whites with aromas of exotic fruits, a reflection of their terroir.
Like Sébastien Riffault, Alexandre cultivates his 11 hectares biodynamically, with his draught horse “Phénomène”.
Alexandre’s ideal is to bottle wines that are 100% grape juice.

On some cuvées he achieves this every year, on others he is sometimes forced to add a little sulfite. In fact, this is the only input he allows himself; no other oenological product is used.

Tasting L d’Ange 2014 (36 months aging), zero sulfite added, is a great moment:
Notes of fresh citrus, candied fruit, a little honey, jasmine, warm stone, and great finesse on the palate. It’s a wine for sharing that brings a smile and good humor.

In 2015, Alexandre’s wines were excluded from the Pouilly Fumé appellation because the INAO considered them oxidized. However, these wines were already found on the world’s finest tables at the time, with demand outstripping production.

After 2 years of legal wrangling, Alexandre regained his right to the appellation, and in the end, the main result was to show the gap between an INAO trapped by obsolete regulations and natural winemakers acclaimed the world over.
Today, both Sébastien Riffault ‘s and Alexandre Bain’s wines are sold on allocation, so if you can find them at your local wine shop, go for it!

See you next week for new drinking adventures, with a little surprise.

Glou-glou is your rendezvous with surprising, natural and convivial spirits. After CBD rum, CBD wine, here’s CBD gin. And like Dead Man’s Finger, it’s a success!

After CBD rum and CBD wines, Aoma gin completes the range of CBD beverages available in France, and is made by an artisanal distillery in Colmar, Alsace.
Presented in a magnificent bottle, this gin is seductively appealing. With such a luxurious case, the product has to be up to the challenge.
Pure, we recognize the classic gin aromas, but what’s new is that CBD adds a pleasantly fresh, herbaceous touch.

I take advantage of the mas provençal’s heavenly setting to pick a few aromatic herbs from the garden.
I start with a sprig of rosemary, which I add to the gin with a splash of Three Cents craft tonic and 3 drops of Antésite hisbiscus and grapefruit concentrate, a famous brand of sugar-free fruit concentrates.

This easy-to-make cocktail is delicious, with the garrigue inviting itself into my glass.
I then try other interesting combinations, to vary the gin and tonics, with mint and lemon, then with cucumber and Antesite hibiscus and grapefruit.

The Aoma gin blend is a real success, and while it makes you want to experiment with all kinds of cocktails, it’s also very pleasant neat on the rocks.
It’s a perfect drink for an aperitif under the sun, and just as enjoyable as a digestif.

Another thing cannabis and wine have in common is that they’re grown in every corner of the globe. If these two delights of nature offer us the best of themselves, marrying them well is no easy task. But when the combination is right, nirvana is guaranteed. Our Weed & Wine guide.

The first thing to bear in mind is that smoking weed dries out the throat, as does drinking tannic wine. The combination of the two is therefore not recommended.
Exclude all tannic reds such as California Cabernet Sauvignon, Bordeaux, red Châteauneuf du Pape or full-bodied Italian wines like Barolo or Nebbiolo.

If you want to refine a little, it’s best to choose wines that are fairly light in alcohol, with good acidity on the finish to bring freshness.
German wines, which I’ve already mentioned in this section, fit the bill perfectly, as do the Auvergne wines and the Puglia wines produced by Valentina Passalacqua.

Like the world of wine, cigars and chocolate, there are now “cannabis sommeliers” in the United States. The website www.ganjier.com even offers certification with a diploma similar to that of the WSET (wines and spirits).
There are two very important crops in California, both economically and culturally: wine and cannabis.

The culture of wine is already very old, but that of cannabis has recently grown to such an extent that these two worlds, which used to ignore each other, are now finding more and more common ground, the concept of the cannabis sommelier being the latest manifestation of this.
The role of the cannabis sommelier is to find the best matches between cannabis and wine, as well as other beverages (coffee, tea, beer, etc.).

To keep things simple, weed can be divided into 3 types: Indica, sativa or hybrid.
Indica causes the whole body to rise, with a relaxing effect that then easily induces sleep.
Sativa gives energy and a more cerebral effect.
Hybrid, as its name suggests, combines the effects of the two previous varieties.
Matching weed and wine thus depends on the effect you want to achieve, and the general mood of the evening. If you want to stay at home and get a good night’s sleep, then an indica with a glass of red will do the trick.

On the other hand, if you’re having dinner guests, it’s best to choose a sativa or possibly a hybrid.
In the reds, we’d go for a pinot noir from Alsace or Sancerre, a Gamay from Auvergne or a Beaujolais, for fresh red fruit aromas, or even a young Grenache for the minty side.It’s also important to avoid wines with too high an alcohol content, whatever the color, as a strong weed with a highly alcoholic wine has a multiplier effect.

If you choose a more citric sativa or hybrid, there are many possibilities for harmonious pairings with white wines.
Choose a Sauvignon (preferably Sancerre or Pouilly Fumé), an Alsace Pinot Blanc, a German Riesling, an Italian Pinot Grigio or a Portuguese Vinho Verde.

Rosés, with their more neutral aromas and acidity, go very well with citric or floral weed.
Sparkling white or rosé wines, whether pet’nat, crémant or champagne, are also a good suggestion.
White maceration wines (known as “orange wines”) are undoubtedly the best possible match, thanks to their complex aromas, a certain bitterness and a fresh finish.

Out of the wine category but proving a perfect companion to weed, there’s Japanese sake, a very pure beverage, with no added sulfites or oenological products, a fairly moderate alcohol content and, above all, a euphoric effect akin to that of sativa.
Sake is a vast world, and I’ll tell you more about it in my next column.