# Domaine de Montbourgeau L'Étoile Cuvée L'Assemblage (2019)

- **Producer:** Domaine de Montbourgeau
- **Colour:** white
- **Type:** still
- **Grapes:** Chardonnay, Savagnin
- **Region:** Jura, France
- **Style:** Classic
- **Alcohol:** 14.5%
- **Average price:** €35
- **Contains sulphites:** Yes
- **When to drink:** Now or Later
- **Serving temperature:** 10–12 °C
- **Aromas & flavours:** lemon, orange, apple, blossom, almond, honey

## About this wine

Domaine de Montbourgeau is a celebrated family estate established in 1920 by Victor Gros in the L'Étoile appellation of France's Jura region. The estate expanded under his son Jean in 1956, and in 1986, Nicole Dériaux took the reins, modernizing the winery and solidifying its international reputation for exceptional precision. In 2019, her son César joined as the fourth generation to manage their 11 hectares of vines. The appellation name L'Étoile refers both to the five surrounding star-shaped hills and the tiny pentacrinite star fossils abundant in its limestone soils. The Cuvée L'Assemblage showcases this singular terroir through a non-oxidative lens.

## Interesting facts

- L'Étoile translates to 'the star', named after five surrounding hills and tiny star-shaped pentacrinite fossils found in the soil.
- Unlike traditional oxidative Jura wines aged under a veil, this cuvée uses topped-up barrels ('ouillé') for pure fruit expression.
- The 2019 vintage marked the arrival of 4th-generation winemaker César Dériaux working alongside his mother Nicole.

## Food pairing

The combination of rich body, high alcohol, and intense natural acidity allows this white Jura wine to cut through creamy sauces and rich poultry while pairing seamlessly with aged cheeses like Comté.

## Wine making process

Crafted from sustainably farmed, hand-harvested Chardonnay and Savagnin grapes grown in clay-limestone soils rich in pentacrinite fossils. The grapes undergo light static settling and are co-fermented using native wild yeasts. Unlike traditional oxidative Jura wines aged under a veil of yeast, L'Assemblage is made in the topped-up (ouillé) style. It is aged for 18 to 36 months in large neutral oak foudres and 600-liter demi-muids, maintaining filled vessels to preserve freshness, focus, and purity while enabling gentle micro-oxygenation.