Region: Rhône | France

Grape: Grenache Noir

Farming: Organic | Biodynamic

Method: Natural

Alc: 12.5%

About the wine: We wanted to share with you the special people behind this wine and its label.

It will soon be a year since our very own Severine visited Elodie Aubert at Clos des Cimes where she spent three wonderful days.

Sev describes it as a special place, that is a peaceful retreat Elodie, her father, and her grandparents have carefully maintained over the years, nurturing the land and vineyards with great respect for the local nature.

It was during those days spent with Elodie that she proposed the two of them collaborate on a wine she had just made. It was her first white wine, made from Grenache Noir, also known as 'Blanc de Noir' which had neither a name nor a label.

Sev was excited to get back to Glasgow and begin working on this collaboration, as well as to propose the artist Erinclare Sutton, a friend and neighbour of Made From Grapes, about creating the artwork.

Inspired by the North Star, Polaris, the name 'Olaris' reflects the idea of a bright white wine made from dark-skinned grapes, symbolising the wine’s journey from the South to the North.

Erin has been working with flower pigmentation for some time and immediately suggested using wine sediment for the artwork. We handed her a bottle of Elodie's La Timidité des Cimes, which would be used for the label you see today.

Olaris offers distinctive high notes of white flowers and chalky minerality that sets it apart from the typical style of Southern Rhône wines.

How it’s made:  ‘Blanc de Noir’ method, direct press, settling, natural fermentation in
concrete and matured for 1 months, no additives, unfiltered.

About the maker: Clos des Cimes is a mountain estate located in the Drôme Provençale, in the old village of Mérindol les Oliviers. Elodie Aubert moved back to her family estate with the idea to make artisanal and authentic wines in 2007, with both an engineering and an oenology diploma under her belt, followed by an internship at Clos Mogador in Priorat.  Following the path of her father by not using pesticides or herbicides she decided to go even further. In 2013, she acquired a herd of sheep to work towards a production as resilient as possible. Donkeys, dogs and even chickens & ducks all have their place in this ecosystem that is constantly evolving. In this environment, the vines planted by Elodie's grandparents in the 50s enjoy a terroir consisting of a clay-limestone soil, very stony and steep. So many factors combine in one place to create lively and singular wines!