2019 Karim Vionnet 'Chiroubles' Vieilles Vignes 1500ml

Region: Chiroubles - Beaujolias, FRA

Variety: Gamay

Farming: Organic

Karim was born in Lyon, to Algerian parents. He was adopted by a family in Morgon, where he worked for 10 years as a vineyard-hand and winemaker for Beaujolais legends such as Guy Breton and Marcel Lapierre. When he started his own operation, he was told that the use of his first name on labels would make sales difficult in modern-day France. So, he initially labelled his wines simply as ‘K. Vionnet.’ As time passed, Karim fully embraced his North African roots and wore the name ‘Karim’ with pride on his bottles, naming his Beaujolais Villages Cuvee “Du Beur Dans Les Pinards”. This loosely translates to “The Arab in your wine” derived from the French expression “du beurre dans les épinards“- something you say when you have some extra money in your pocket that would allow you to “add a bit of butter in your spinach.” Today he farms 5ha of land organically from different sites in Beaujolais with some of his bush vines being 40-60 years old.