Jérôme Saurigny

Domaine Saurigny
Loire, France

We met Jérôme at his winery in March ‘22. It was one of those wonderful afternoons that flows naturally into evening, with friends and importers joining for a relaxed, memorable tasting. Jérôme’s wines instantly moved and impressed us. They are intense, pure and full of energy – and very rare. We're delighted to bring a selection of these highly sought after bottles to Germany.

Jérôme Saurigny studied oenology in Bordeaux and worked as a cellar master in Pomerol, but it wasn’t until his brother introduced him to Patrick Desplats and Sébastien Dervieux (aka Babass) of Domaine Les Griottes that he was inspired to make wine without additives.

He settled near the banks of the river Layon (a tributary of the Loire) in 2005, determined to make low intervention wine. 6.5 hectares are farmed with horse and plough, and the focus is mainly on Chenin Blanc, Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc and Grolleau.

Hit by a series of hard frosts Jérôme started to co-ferment different grape varieties, resulting in blends that redefine the boundaries of simply white or red. He uses a ‘floating’ technique inspired by Daniel Sage where whole clusters of grapes are submerged in direct-press juice; an innovative twist on carbonic maceration where juice replaces the need for added CO2.

Jérôme is also renowned for his sweet Chenins - a rare breed when it comes to natural wine since, on paper, sweet wine without added sulphites is impossible.