BORDEAUX’S WILD SIDE
Modern viticulture has probably suppressed bad wine, but it has totally erased greatness,’ laments Jean-Michel Comme, director at Château Pontet-Canet. ‘I aim for greatness, even if I sometimes only achieve “very good”.’ So runs his concise argument for biodynamics and minimal intervention, a statement he distils towards the end of an intense four-hour interview.
Esoteric and deeply philosophical, biodynamic viticulture often overlaps with natural wine and a ‘back-to-the-roots’ ethic. Blue-chip Bordeaux isn’t its obvious spiritual home. Burgundy or Alsace are more likely candidates, where many top producers work with biodynamics – Zind-Humbrecht, Ostertag, Domaine Leflaive, Domaine de la Romanée-Conti to name a few. Beaujolais or the Loire could also make persuasive cases.
But Bordeaux? The world’s most famous wine region has struggled to be part of the 21st-century ecology conversation. Instead, it has made multiple headlines for overuse of pesticides, in some cases causing schools to evacuate pupils and vineyard workers to sue employers. Then there’s the love affair with rich Asian customers, the consolidation and the buyouts that make it feel more akin to a giant boardroom than a viticultural area.
wine critic Eric Asimov took a barometer reading in 2016: ‘Nobody wants to talk about
