Domaine Monier-Perréol

In Saint-Désirat, a hamlet in the northern Rhône appellation Saint-Joseph, lives Jean-Pierre Monier. In the hills above the village, he is the third generation with a great love for agriculture. Surrounded by fruit trees, singing birds and buzzing bees, Jean-Pierre supplements viticulture with fruit growing, apricots, cherries and peaches to be precise. It seems as if we are going back to the previous century, so lovely, peaceful and natural is the environment and his lifestyle. And that is exactly what he strives for with his wines.

High quality grapes
Jean-Pierre lives simply, almost humbly, driven by biodynamic convictions on his tiny estate: “I have calculated that I earn less than three euros an hour, but I am so happy.” Until 2001 he sold all his grapes to the local cooperative. After friends convinced him of the exceptional quality, he got the courage to produce wine himself. Inspired by Maria Thun, his domain has been certified biodynamic since 2006.

Collaboration with Philippe Perréol
Due to the growing demand at the time, Jean-Pierre started a collaboration with his friend Philippe Perréol in 2008. For Philippe too, purity and authenticity are central and – like the Monier family – he previously sold his grapes to the cooperative. They complement each other nicely and together cultivate more than 5.5 hectares. More than 4 hectares contain syrah, supplemented with marsanne. They find each other in the approach: the grapes are stripped, fermented on cement and then left in large barrels (tonneaux) for a year before bottling without filtration.

Pearl of the appellation
Due to the small scale of the domain and the labor-intensive approach, the number of bottles is limited. Good wines from the northern Rhône are rare anyway, and we were truly amazed when we tasted them. This quality sells itself, we promise you beautiful Syrah and Marsanne. Allow to decant for a while and then enjoy to the fullest.