Domaine Bonnigal-Bodet, France

Having been handed down from father to son since 1927, the estate is now run by the 4th generation and long-time best friends’ Jean Baptiste Bonnigal and Stéphane Bodet, who took over together in 2015. The vineyards themselves are stretched across a large range of terroirs, with a multitude of local grape varities, including Chenin Blanc, Côt, Sauvignon Blanc and Pineau d'Aunis. Using organic and biodynamic practices Jean Baptiste and Stéphane use their skills learnt in New Zealand and Bordeaux to create wines of both precision and purity. They believe that the work in the vineyard is essential to harvest grapes of optimum quality, which is why they consider manual work so necessary and unavoidable to respect both the plant and fruit. The soil is worked to encourage deep root implantation, allowing the vines to express through the grapes the purest expression of the terroir and vintage.