# En Virée (2025)

- **Producer:** Le Raisin à Plume
- **Colour:** red
- **Type:** still
- **Grapes:** Grolleau
- **Region:** Loire, France
- **Style:** Natural
- **Alcohol:** 12.0%
- **Average price:** €15
- **Vegan:** Yes
- **Contains sulphites:** Yes
- **When to drink:** Now or Later
- **Serving temperature:** 13–15 °C
- **Aromas & flavours:** redcurrant, raspberry, cherry, black pepper, violet

## About this wine

Le Raisin à Plume is an artisanal estate in Oudon in the Loire Valley, established in 2014 by Jacques and Julie Février. After working as a sommelier in London and gaining hands-on winemaking experience in Australia with Anton Van Klopper, Jacques returned to France to create expressive natural wines. En Virée is a custom négoce cuvée crafted from organic Grolleau grapes sourced from trusted growers in Anjou to compensate for low vineyard yields caused by erratic Loire weather.

## Interesting facts

- Founder Jacques Février worked as a sommelier in London before making natural wine in Australia.
- The winery built an award-winning eco-friendly cellar made of raw earth, straw, and timber frame in 2024.
- En Virée was created as a négoce cuvée to overcome severe frost damage in the estate vineyards.

## Food pairing

High, crunchy acidity and soft, low tannins make this fresh Grolleau extremely food-friendly. It acts as a palate cleanser against rich pork fat and charcuterie, while its light body balances tender white meats and goat cheese without overpowering them.

## Wine making process

Hand-harvested from certified organic vineyards in Anjou, the grapes undergo non-interventionist vinification with indigenous yeasts. The wine receives a gentle, short maceration to preserve vibrant primary fruit and soft tannic structure. Fermentation and short aging take place entirely in neutral fiberglass tanks without oak influence or synthetic additives. The wine is bottled unfined and unfiltered with negligible to zero added sulfites.