Karim Vionnet ‘Fleurie’

Karim Vionnet ‘Fleurie’ – do not be fooled by this wine’s affable ripeness, there is a brooding nature lurking in its magenta depths. Initially bursting with red cherry, raspberry and wild strawberry, the excitability is balanced by a discreet earthy note. Soaring acidity washes over the palette as delicate traces of sweet spices tickle the tongue. Finally, a fleeting whisper of cherry compote leads into a saline swan song. Purity and grace.

Karim Vionnet was a baker by trade before turning his passion towards wine-making. For the best part of a decade, he worked under the priceless tutelage of Lapierre and Breton. Having consolidated this anarchial ‘Gang of Four’ wisdom, he started his own production in 2006. With five hectares under vine, he applies organic principles, rejecting the use of unnecessary intervention or artifices. His parcels are located in Quincié, Beaujeu and Lantignié, all of which boast varied soil types from marl, schist, sand to granite. Simplicity seems to be the guiding light on Domaine Vionnet; accessible and honest wines that reflect the truth of his labour, wines that twinkle with grace and ease. As of 2020, his daughter Noémie has joined the project and has since released a cuveé that she herself vinified.

Karim Vionnet ‘Fleurie’ – the vines for this are grown on granite soils, averaging 45 years in age. Moreover, the wine is neither fined nor filtered and aged in old oak barrels. A fleshy and superbly ripe demonstration of the Fleurie appellation; conclusively, fine and graceful with austere undertones.