Jura Wines for Winter & Comfort
Plus Pairing Ideas!
Hello! If you are just picking up the Grape to Table newsletter, thanks so much for joining to learn more about wine, food, and life. There’s lots to read – from my origin story (click here to read) to fun content focused on meaningful time at the table with delicious wine and food. For now, my newsletter is free and you can find all the content by clicking here – basically a little Grape to Table website created by the great folks at Substack. I did realize recently that you only see the various categories of past newsletters if you open this link in a browser (rather than the Substack app). It’s a shame because the categories make it easy to find content you might be interested in…so here are some more embedded links! Click here for Wine Tips. Click here for Recipes. Click here for Q & As. As always I really appreciate when you hit the like button as it helps get the content in front of more people :) and spread the joy of wine and food! Without further ado…my ode to Jura wine!
Well, I would venture to say that the new year has not started exactly as I hoped…from devastating news on New Year’s day in New Orleans, to California fires, to general political turmoil, and finally to more bad news (although I am tempted to call it propaganda) regarding wine consumption. Well, really, the surgeon general made a very broad statement about the evils of alcohol in general but sadly even moderate consumption of well made (i.e. small producer/well farmed) wines come under this generalization. Of course I do understand the dangers of alcohol consumption and do not support or promote overconsumption in any way, but I just feel there has to be a different set of parameters for moderate consumption (especially of wine!).
So…while there is not much I can do about the rest of the news (beyond donating/staying true to my beliefs in a peaceful future)...on the wine front I can stay my course with this newsletter: portraying wine in the way I love it most – as a delicious vehicle to learn history, geography, geology, and also to gather people together at the table for meaningful times. And in the end, that’s really the grand prize in life for me – those quality moments. I also love sharing quality moments outside in nature, but my love language is cooking so there is nothing like sitting down to a meal made from the heart and sharing a fitting bottle of wine.
On this note, it was such a lovely treat last weekend to cook up something delicious after my first wine class of the year and enjoy it with a bottle I featured in this class. In case you missed it, I do teach wine classes at a local wine shop/bar here in Charleston, SC. My winter class series is sold out, but you can feel free to email me sarah@grapetotable.com to learn more/be added to the waitlist. I will have another series in late spring/summer.
My current series is a tour of the major old world wine regions (aka western Europe!). It was so great to see a wide variety of enthusiastic wine lovers in the first class where we explored some of France’s major wine regions. We ended with the Jura, and the bright, vibrant red made from the native Ploussard (aka Poulsard) was the wine that I took home. (I even planned in advance for this and ordered an extra bottle for myself as I know how much I love this wine, and it’s so perfect for winter, which we are actually having this year!).
If you have not heard of the Jura, no worries, I am sure you are not alone. It is definitely a bit more off the beaten path, nestled in the Alps, bordering Switzerland. Here, you will find reds made from the native grapes of Poulsard and Trousseau, and then also Pinot Noir and whites made from Chardonnay & the native Savagnin grape. You will find their own sweet wine known as Vin de Paille made in red and white styles.
And you will find Jura's distinctive Vin Jaune -- a wine aged under flor like certain Sherries but not fortified. It is made from the Savagnin grape. Note: Flor is a type of yeast that develops as a film on the surface of the wine and protects the wine from oxidation and eventually results in its trademark characteristics – light, delicate, almond colored, slight salinity, and great acidity. It is most famously found in southern Spain in their dry Sherry (a fortified wine).
In terms of geology here in Jura hey share Burgundy’s limestone bedrock. (Burgundy is just 60 miles to the west.) But in terms of general vibes, Jura seems to be a world apart from any sort of aristocratic tendencies as it’s generally very small, family run operations. Side note: this is also the home of Comte cheese (definitely one of my absolute faves), and really in the “olden days” families were making wine AND cheese (and simply living off the land).
As mentioned, I took home the Ploussard (aka Poulsard) from Desiré Petit. The domaine was started by Desiré Petit in 1932. Today Désiré’s grandchildren (a sister-brother duo) Damien and Anne-Laure run the show. They have set the domaine on a path to biodynamic farming, while vinifying and aging the wines in large, used oak barrels.
Both Ploussard and Trousseau remind me a bit of Nebbiolo if you are familiar with that Italian grape. All three of these grapes have overriding tart red fruit aromas and flavors with an earthy backbone and sometimes a touch of florality (think dried roses, but not overwhelming). They also usually present very light in color concentration in the glass, but this is deceptive as they do have tannins – that bit of grip/structure on the finish.
I cooked up a relatively easy and very satisfying meal of curried Puglian lentils (from Rancho Gordo of course) with roasted chicken thighs that I also gave a nice curry seasoning. (Recipe for the lentils at end of newsletter!) Regular newsletter readers know my obsession with Rancho Gordo – an heirloom legume purveyor based in northern California. If you have not heard of them and love to cook you MUST check them out :). Regular newsletter readers might also remember my tangent about making your own curry seasoning, which I still support, and you can find my recipe here. But I have to admit I was recently drawn into the amazing story of Barkha Cardoz who’s husband Chef Floyd Cardon passed away too young (in the very early days of the COVID pandemic). Barkha has kept their shared passion for cooking alive via a very thoughtful spice line that’s a collaboration with Burlap & Barrel (a very conscientious spice purveyor that I have mentioned before). For the lentils I used the Goan Masala. So…quite the mashup of cultures: an Italian variety of lentils seasoned with an Indian spice blend and served with a French wine. Sometimes I can get obsessed with a theme (like only French food with French wine), but you know that gets old. And this all worked supremely well!
If you are looking for Jura wines I do think you will need to head to a small-ish wine shop. I definitely don’t imagine Total Wine carrying these more esoteric wines, and regardless I am always a proponent of shopping small (even if ordering online – order from a small shop!). Another one of my fave producers is Tissot (not to be confused with another Tissot found in the nearby Savoie region)! Here in Charleston, you can find some Desiré Petit and some Tissot at Graft Wine Shop. You can find a wide array of Tissot at my favorite cheese shop: Counter Cheese Mongers. And you can special order both Desiré Petit and Tissot from Wine & Company where I teach my classes! (The Desiré Petit Ploussard should be around $35 retail, which I think is quite reasonable given the quality.)
I hope all of this is a nice distraction from any troubles you have. Happy cooking and sipping!
P.S. No, sadly I have not been to the Jura. I missed out on a great chance to go there in 2019 and will forever kick myself. But one day…
P.P.S. In the above photo, please notice one of my favorite candles,which happens to come from an L.A. based woman-owned, small biz: P.F. Candle Company. They are giving 100% of their profits to wildfire relief efforts through today (Sunday, January 19). As you might imagine I am quite picky about scented candles,and truthfully I don’t use them at the dinner table. But in the winter I often enjoy the Piñon and Lavender candles from P.F. as they are so natural and not overwhelming at all! Check them out :)
I had a lovely Trousseau from Jura on New Year's Eve... thanks for the reminder, as I was just looking for a wine from Savoie/Jura to put in an article about Alpine wines!
Beautifully written Sarah, I’m looking forward to trying some of these Jura wines. You inspired me to order some legumes from Rancho Gordo and read their story. Can’t wait to try them!