Jérôme Guichard: The Patient Hand of Domaine Sauveterre

Jérôme Guichard is a singular figure in the natural wine landscape of Burgundy, cultivating a quiet revolution from his base in Montbellet, in the Mâconnais. His journey into winemaking began not in a traditional wine school, but through a career as a landscape architect, a profession that instilled in him a profound understanding of living ecosystems and a deep respect for the earth.

This background profoundly shapes his viticulture today. In 2011, Jérôme took over the venerable vineyards of Guy Blanchard, a respected pioneer of natural winemaking. These vineyards, which include ancient Chardonnay and Gamay vines, have been farmed organically since 1917, a legacy Jérôme not only continues but intensifies. His vineyard work is superlative natural farming: he has ceased ploughing since 2019, eschews copper sprays (even those permitted in organic farming), and fosters a vibrant, biodiverse environment where native grasses, herbs, and flowers grow freely among the vines. For Jérôme, the health of the soil is paramount, believing it leads to wines of unparalleled depth and character.

In the cellar, Jérôme's philosophy is one of absolute non-intervention and immense patience. Fermentations are spontaneous, driven by the yeasts inherent to his healthy grapes. He adds nothing, removes nothing, and allows the wines to evolve at their own pace in old barrels. This élevage can extend for exceptionally long periods – sometimes up to five years – as he waits for the wine's often bracing acidity to integrate perfectly with its fruit.

The result is a collection of intense, uncompromised, and often iconoclastic wines. Jérôme's Chardonnays, frequently bottled by parcel, powerfully express the nuances of their clay and limestone soils, from the gentle florals of "Bouchat" to the profound nobility of ninety-year-old "Les Perrières." His Gamay wines, from sites like "Promess," offer deep, savory, yet vibrant expressions of the grape.

Jérôme Guichard's wines are not designed to shout, but to speak with quiet courage and unwavering integrity. Like his minimalist labels, they reflect a deep commitment to patience, authenticity, and the unfiltered truth of the Mâconnais and Beaujolais terroirs he so meticulously tends.ais and Beaujolais. Planted in 1946, these vines flourish in the fertile, black volcanic soils at the foot of a mountain, producing wines that radiate with energy and a unique sense of place.