Amid undulating, green-forested hills, serene crystalline lakes, waterfalls, and caves, you’ll find France’s tiny Jura region tucked between Burgundy and the Swiss border, just seventy miles long from tip to tail. But for the charming limestone-canopied houses dotting the landscape and the hollow clank of cowbells sounding from ever-present bovines, you can easily imagine dinosaurs roaming about the towering ancient glacier-gnashed peaks, lumbering through the land’s diverse soils.
     The local limestone outcroppings produce wines that share many stylistic characteristics with those of Burgundy, but with more natural acidity. The marl soils impart power and an exceptional mineral quality. Jura Chardonnay masquerades as if Chablis had been dropped on top of an alpine peak. But the region’s signature white grape is Savagnin, an ancient variety that’s an ancestor to a diverse portfolio of grapes, including Chenin Blanc, Grüner Veltliner, and Sauvignon Blanc.
     Within this idyllic setting, the Jura abounds with experimentation. The area is teeming with native yeasts, which local vintners take full advantage of, particularly in sous-voile cuvées, creating remarkably complex and at times eccentric-seeming wines, like some kind of alchemical elixir crafted by benevolent trolls.
     Driven by both modern scientific knowledge (having earned his degree in enology in Burgundy) and inherited wisdom (his grandfather kept some private vines to make wine for his family), François Rousset-Martin crafts wines that reflect his deep exploration of the Jura’s terroirs. His work centers on the Château-Chalon area, with a primary focus on Savagnin, which he loves for its aromatic prowess. Additionally, François fashions fresh, mineral-driven Chardonnays and even a Fleurie from Gamay grapes purchased from a good friend and meant to drink with good friends.
     François’ Côtes du Jura wines are made mostly in a non-oxidative style, but they often have just a touch of aged quality for added interest. He vinifies by parcel, with minimal sulfur, and bottles unfiltered after extended maturation in barrel. The resulting wines are incredibly complex, unusual, with wondrously extended finishes, and are almost astounding in the enchanting variety of aromas and flavors they manifest—floral and delicate, exotic and savory—what singular wizardry!

Call our shop at (510) 524-1524 to speak with me or one of my colleagues about all our François Rousset-Martin selections.