Le Bois Dieu 

Le Bois Dieu was established by Salma Cassam Chenaï and Frédéric Thiry who in 2015 moved to the commune of Semur-en-Brionnais, an hour west of Macon on the eastern side of the Loire River, to restore an old agricultural estate and work with its plots of old gamay vines. These vines were once part of a 4000 hectare vineyard that was largely abandoned after the phylloxera crisis in a widespread move toward cattle farming in the area. While this has been unfortunate for wine production in Brionnais, the upside is that the area has almost never been exposed to chemicals and the soil is very much intact, resulting in magnificent terroir for producers like Salma and Frédéric to work with. 

Salma and Frédéric met while travelling in Asia and, having moved back to Europe together in 2002, developed a keen interest in natural wines after meeting Pierre Overnoy and other winemakers in the Jura. Wine has always been a great love for Frédéric, whose Burgundian grandfather took him to visit the cellars of some of the great estates at a young age. Salma was born in Madagascar and was first exposed to farming concepts through the production of spices and vanilla, which her brother Yoann now imports to Geneva. Also living in Switzerland for a time, both practising law in the district of Vaud, Salma and Frédéric’s love of Brionnais grew out of a series of weekend trips to Burgundy, and six years after making the move to the area, Le Bois Dieu released their first wines in July 2021. 

In addition to making wines from their own vineyard, Salma and Frédéric also make wine from fruit bought from other friends in the area – primarily from Pierre Boyat. Carbonic and semi-carbonic maceration are used to create more primary-focussed wines in the “sur le fruit” style that the winemakers most enjoy drinking. For this reason, both punch-downs and pump-overs are avoided in favour of a lighter style of extraction. Fermentations and élevage take place in stainless steel, foudre and amphora, depending on the cuvée. 


Semur-en-Brionnais, France

 

Information on previous wines

  • 2023 Chardonnay from Les Touches in Perigny, farmed by Fabien Grelet. Macerated for 28 days, with elevage in a mixture of steel tank and amphora.

    2019 Chardonnay from Pierre Boyat’s vineyard in Leynes. Macerated for 16 days and pressed to barrel for elevage.

  • 2022 Chardonnay from St Hilaire d’Ozillan, macerated for 12 days. Elevage in stainless steel.

  • 2023 Chardonnay and chenin blanc from Domaine du Père Benôit (St Hillaire d’Ozilhan, Gard), with the addition of some macerated estate-grown chardonnay. Elevage in stainless steel tank.

  • 2022 Direct-press mourvèdre from Lésignan Corbières in the south. Elevage in stainless steel and old barrel.

  • 2023 Viognier from Domaine du Père Benôit (St Hillaire d’Ozilhan, Gard). Macerated for 3 weeks as whole bunches, then pressed to stainless steel tank for 9 months of elevage.

  • 2023 Gamay, gamaret, chardonnay and muscat, co-fermented, with elevage in a mixture of steel tank and amphora.

  • 2021 Direct press carignan from Domaine du Père Benoît (near Nimes) resulting in a rosé wine. Delicate red fruit with a small amount of dissolved gas.

  • 2022 Mostly cinsault from Lesignan Corbières in the south, with a 15% portion of estate-grown muscat. Elevage in ceramic amphora and stainless steel tank.

  • 100% gamay from 80 year old vines.‍ ‍

    2023 Info coming soon.

    2020 A warmer year resulting in glossy but delicate red fruit.

    2019 Semi-carbonic maceration for 15 days before being pressed to stainless steel for 9 months of elevage.

  • 100% gamay.

    2020 A warmer year with a slightly darker shade of fruit as a result.

  • 100% gamay.

    2019 From old and young vines. Semi-carbonic maceration in tank before being pressed to foudre for 8 months of elevage.

  • Old-vine gamay from Pierre Boyat’s vineyard in Leynes. Vinified in amphora

    2019 Info coming soon

  • 2023 Gamay grown on triassic sandstone by Jocelyn Vigoroux (Payzac, Cévennes Ardéchoises). Semi-carbonic maceration, with elevage in steel tank and amphora.

  • 2019 Gamay from Mailly. Fermented carbonically and aged in amphora for 24 months.

  • 2022 Estate-grown pinot noir and pinot meunier, vinified in steel tank. Bottled exclusively in magnum.