STARTING OVER IN BÉRU

CUVÉE N0.2 / CHABLIS

Story & Photos: Stephanie Köhler

Only nine kilometers away from Chablis but a 20-minute car ride around the vine-covered slopes, lies the little village of Béru. The domain of Château de Béru is today run by Athénaïs de Béru. She had quite an unplanned and adventurous start but has succeeded in making her dreams for the château come true.

The Béru family has owned the historical château, first mentioned in the 12th century, for more than 400 years, and grew vines for many generations until the vineyards were ravaged by phylloxera. They were left untouched for many years afterward, skipping one generation of winegrowers. But in 1987, Athénaïs' father, Comte Éric de Béru, decided to replant the entire 15 hectare vineyard and reestablish the family tradition of winegrowing. Ten years later, though, serious health problems meant he had to rent the land to a tenant, who then took over the maintenance of the vines.

When the tenant called the family a few years later to tell them that he planned to retire and therefore wanted to end his contract, the family were taken completely by surprise and got together to discuss what to do. Finally, Athénaïs made up her mind: she was going to take over the vines. "l had lived in Paris for a long time since my father got sick, and studied Finance prior to entering that world and working for a bank. I didn't have anything to do with wine at all besides a huge passion for drinking it! So, when we tried to figure out what to do with our vineyards, I thought I'd give it a go. The timing was favorable as I was just about to change my job and I really saw it as an opportunity."

However, she was the only idealist in the family and her mother wasn't really happy with the adventure she wanted to get herself into. "She made it clear she didn't want to have anything to do with the vines but, of course, she finally let me go my own way—she's a great motheL"

ATHÉNAïS JUST PLUNGED RICHT INTO HER NEW ADVENTURE.

Luckily, they agreed with the tenant to take back the vineyards piece by piece, as she was overwhelmed by the prospect of having 15 hectares and no experience whatsoever. So, she spent a year preparing, quickly rushing through a viticultural course in Beaune and working at an organic domaine in Savigny-les-Beaune to learn the best practices. "But," she says, thinking back to the moment things got serious for her, "after that year, the most important part was to try all the techniques I had learned, this time in my own vineyards."

The first thing Athénaïs did when she arrived at the domain in 2004 was to take back the piece at the heart of their family vineyards: Clos de Béru.

From there she developed progressively, taking back the parcels one at a time and instantly reaching out for organic certification. "l didn't know much about what I was getting myself into, and certainly approached things with a touch of naivety," she recalls. "However, I had a personal vision of how I wanted to work. The protection of the environment has always been important to me and, given that I directly picked up my knowledge at an organic domain, I really didn't know how to work otherwise. It all started very naturally."

While her mother dedicated herself to turning the château into guest rooms and apartments, adding a side business to the adventurous undertaking of her daughter, Athénaïs got busy and started building up a network to find valuable help. By connecting with the other organic winegrowers from Burgundy, she found the support needed to advance her organic wine growing. By 2009, she had finished reuniting the domain's parcels under her direction, and with the last parcel taken over still undergoing conversion to organic viticulture, she rushed into the first trials using biodynamic techniques. "Nine times out of ten, when I liked a wine it just happened to be a biodynamic wine. I think they have a different energy, a different emotion and balance. That's what I wanted for my wines as well " Quickly adapting the techniques further, she finally received certification for the domain in 2011.

Times in the region of Chablis, however, aren't always easy. "In biodynamics, one quickly gets to the limit of possibilities. We are in a complicated region here. Last year, for example, we basically had rain throughout all the growing season. It was tough for the whole team to have to go out and do the same treatments over again only to see them get washed away just minutes later." Athénaïs thinks back over the difficult growing season in 2016. "The choice of biodynamic viticulture really demands a lot of passion, but I don't want to complain. We are a lucky generation, the roads of organic and biodynamic practices have already been paved for us. It was the generation 20 to 30 years before us who really did the hardest work; the pioneers, who still had to figure out what the best way would be. Whereas we modern hippies benefit from their results.

ATHÉNAïS FELT SHE wÁs JOINING AGLOBAL MOVEMENT WHEN SHE STARTED AND APPRECIATES THE DYNAMICS OF MODERN SOCIETY.

"We are living in an era where the demand for organic products is all of a sudden coming from the consumers. Many people started asking the right questions about all the food scandals we saw, and have taken more interest in knowing where their food comes from ever si nce. Little by little, this movement has expanded to viticulture. Consumers ask a lot today, and I've got the feeling they keep pushing those viticulturers and agriculturers who are not working sustainably yet, to go there. Luckily they have realized that the grapes we make our wines from are food, too, and I think this is the awakening of a consciousness about what they consume."

With its altitudes of 350 to 400 meters and many different expositions, the village of Béru marks the highest point of the region. A relatively thin but extremely calcareous and hard Kimmeridgian layer comes close to the surface here, turning the vine planting into exceedingly hard work. Athénaïs has decided to go the single vineyard way and vinifies each of her plots separately. She works with three Climats in Chablis Village, Premier Cru Vaucoupin, and the two historic vineyards surrounding the château: monopole vineyard Clos Béru and L'Orangerie. The Clos Béru, which owes its name to the 13th century wall that surrounds the parcel of three hectares, lies right next to the impressive ancient trees which enclose the château. The 30-year-old vines grow in limey and rocky soil on a Kimmeridgian layer with a south/south-west facing exposition. Athénaïs and her team plow the soil with horses so that the vines' roots can reach deeper into the soil to find water and nutrients. And she is fascinated by the variety nature has to offer.

"It is amazing to see the soils changing structure or the exposition of the slope have so much influence on the vines. In our Clos de Béru, for example, there's a little more clay here, and a little more lime there, but the soil is mainly calcareous. And a few meters away, a marly spot comes through. All of this makes for the individuality of a plot.".

In normal years the production of the domain is around 70.000 bottles, of which one third are made up of the cuvée "Terroir de Béru", a blend from other plots around the village. "The idea of this wine is to make a signature cuvée of the identity of the terroirs of Béru. It includes all of the vines which grow on the Kimmeridgian limestone plateaus of Béru in altitudes of 350 to 400 meters, which gives it the characteristic smoky and iodine notes. Due to the altitude the grapes are usually quite ripe and well rounded."

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A few steps away, walking through the park and the beautiful yard of the château, we enter an unspectacular and rather small side door. An ancient stairway with irregular steps and a low ceiling leads into the small wine cellar which dates from the end of the 1 2th century.

"THIS CELLAR IS GENIUS," SHE ANNOUNCES.

Two chimneys with inverse passages in the corner of the cellar don't allow for air to come inside but rather lead the air from cellar to the outside. "Those passages continuously pump air outside so there is absolutely no humidity here in the cellar, and even duringfermentation, which releases C02, we have never measured saturated C02 in the caves. The old really knew how to build," she muses, as we begin to taste her wines.

With her innovative spirit and cheerful character, Athénaïs approaches her challenges with lots of joy and passionate dedication, even if her yields are far from being stable due to the difficult growing conditions of the region. "2015 was a good year for us. We harvested almost 55 hl/ha on our 30-year-old vineyards, instead of the 45 hl/ha we achieve in most years," she explains.

Using massal selections for the new plantings, such as the old fruit tree plot, "L'Orangerie", which she replanted with vines earlier this year, Athénaïs is seeking even more diversity and individuality in her wines. Her definition of a good wine is rather simple and emotional, though•

"l grew up in a family that spends a lot of time cooking together, and we either drink while cooking or cook while drinking— we always manage a combination of the two. For me, wines have to inspire me to get to the table and have another glass with the food.

Even though her wines are already widely served in gastronomic restaurants, she has opened a pop-up bar at the château this summer, where people can enjoy the historical site in a cozy, leisurely atmosphere surrounded by its stunning vineyards. And, of course, her wines come with a small selection of bistro snacks to celebrate her love for wine and food. Her unstoppable drive and positive energy couldn't get any more delicious. There will surely be many new creative projects and new wines following in the future.

MUST TRY

Terroir de Beru 2015

Powerful, round and very balanced, with fresh apple must on the nose. Showing wild flowers and apple peel, a touch of apple confit and straw. Very lively with a good length and tension. Blend from several stainless steel vinifications.

Clos de Béru 2015

A rich and generous with great density, concentration and an energetic liveliness. Grapefruit and apricots with abundant fresh hazelnut aromas, hints of leafy notes and all the generosity from two years of barrel aging in a long finish with allspice, bay leaf, black pepper, allspice.

Single-Vineyard "Montserre" 2015

Apple peel, star fruit and yellow, solar energy. Summer impressions, with a lively energy and acidity, almost a touch phenolic in the finish, with notes of hay. Cood structure and flesh. Partially fermented in stainless steel and barrel.

Côte Au Prêtre 2015

Rich and generous with tonka bean, salt butter caramel and lemon confit. Hints of smoke. Aged in barrels. Recently bottled at tasting.