Quel Cepage

Black. Gack. Sweet licorice. Berry juice. Powdered granite. What's the French version of licorella? I can imagine what these soils look like. Roiling passion. Bright blasting koolaid Berries. Lovely citric acid. Candy wand. Lick em stix. Swirl and wow. Dark. Bells. I want a case of this.

The Brutal Wine Company is a crazy wonderful concept. Based around a natural wine bar in Barcelona, named apropos, Bar Brutal. These are one-off cuvees from natural winemakers. Some bottles are for the bar, and accompanying wine store Can Cisa in el Born, but the rest are sold by the winemakers as a prestige project.

This is from Domaine la Boheme, winemaker Patrick Bouju has a few hectares on the gentle slopes of Auvergne, at the headlands of the Loire River, just west of Beaujolais, where he focuses on old vine Gamay d’Auvergne. Some broken mixed parcels with the vines too close together for a horse to plow. Had to get a skinnier horse.

50% Gamay d’Auvergne, and 50% Syrah. Patrick's vineyard and cellar practices are minimal, using observations not tricks. Zero sulphur for almost 10 years. Pure wine.