COUNTRY :
France
REGION :
Rhône Valley
PRODUCTION :
Sébastien Chatillon
In 2016, after working as the head sommelier of Le Chateaubriand in Paris for seven years, Sébastien Chatillon moved to Vallabrix in the Gard to start Ad Vinum.
Originally from Normandy, Sébastien went to university for about 4 months before deciding it was dull and not for him. Questioning his life path, he tried out many jobs. He sold candy, worked in stables, led rock bands… What would bring him true fulfillment?
Sébastien often ended a night of partying at his friend’s dad’s wine cave, drinking until the early morning hours. It occurred to him that he liked wine. He figured if he was going to drink the beverage until dawn, then maybe he should learn how to make it. He moved to the Loire Valley and worked with René Mosse in Anjou for four years. René opened his world to natural wine. “It was fresh, different, and in the morning I had no headache. A dream for a guy like me.”
Sébastien’s next move was to Paris for a girl. René set him up with Iñaki Aizpitarte, the chef of Le Chateaubriand. At the young age of 25, he became the sommelier of a restaurant that in 2010 was ranked no. 11 on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list. Chateaubriand enabled him to dive deep into natural wine. There was absolutely no turning back.
In addition to starting Ad Vinum, Sébastien Chatillon owns Le Cave. Le Cave is a tiny wine shop sandwiched between Le Dauphin and Le Chateaubriand that sells natural wine from more than 15 countries.
Petit Agité Les Agités
Region: Rhône
Grape: Marsanne, Cinsault
Vineyard Size:
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines:
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking:
Aging:
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Ravaged”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Pinot Gris
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: 8 days maceration with skins, spontaneous fermentation in neutral oak with indigenous yeasts
Aging: 18 months in barrel
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“St Agathe”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Grenache, Syrah
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: 4 days maceration and direct press of syrah, spontaneous fermentation in neutral oak with indigenous yeasts
Aging: in resin
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Léon”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Grenache, Syrah, Sauvignon
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: 3 days maceration and direct press for sauvignon, spontaneous fermentation in neutral oak with indigenous yeasts
Aging: 4 months in wooden cask
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“La Confidence”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Grenache, Syrah, Uni Blanc, Sauvignon
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: 12 days maceration, spontaneous fermentation in neutral oak with indigenous yeasts
Aging: 18 months in one barrique
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“LES AMANTS MAUDITS”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Grenache, Ugni Blanc
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: spontaneous co-fermentation in neutral oak with indigenous yeasts
Aging: in neutral oak, sur lie (Gewürtztraminer)
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“RIOT”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Gewürtztraminer
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: short maceration, spontaneous fermentation in neutral oak with indigenous yeasts
Aging: in neutral oak
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Une côte dans la nuit”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Pinot Noir
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: spontaneous fermentation in neutral oak with indigenous yeasts
Aging: in neutral oak
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Lifeboat”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Mourvèdre, Carignan, Grenache, Syrah
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: spontaneous, co-fermentation in neutral oak with indigenous yeasts
Aging: in neutral oak
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“FAHRENHEIT”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Grenache, Syrah
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: co-maceration in neutral oak, spontaneous, co-fermentation in neutral oak with indigenous yeasts
Aging: in neutral oak
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Rock’n Roll Suicide”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Grenache, Mourvèdre, Roussanne, Carignan, Grenache Blanc, Syrah, Cinsault, Bourbelenc, Counoise, Clairette, Grenache Blanc
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: spontaneous, co-fermentation in neutral oak with indigenous yeasts
Aging: in neutral oak
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Blood Farmers”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Grenache, Mourvèdre, Roussanne, Carignan
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: co-maceration of Grenache, Mourvèdre, and Roussanne, direct press Carignan, spontaneous fermentation in neutral oak with indigenous yeasts
Aging: in neutral oak
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“They Hear About Us”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Grenache
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: short maceration, direct press, spontaneous fermentation in stainless steel with indigenous yeasts
Aging: in stainless steel
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“oursín”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Mourvèdre, Ugni Blanc
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: co-maceration of Ugni Blanc and Mourvèdre, direct press of Mourvèdre and Ugni Blanc, spontaneous, co-fermentation in neutral oak with indigenous yeasts
Aging: in neutral oak and acacia
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Back on the streets”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Grenache, Syrah, Ugni Blanc
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: direct press of Syrah and Grenache, 12 day co-maceration with Ugni Blanc, spontaneous fermentation in neutral oak with indigenous yeasts
Aging: in neutral oak
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
Rancio
Region: Rhône
Grape: Pinot Noir, Grenache, Cinsault
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: direct press, spontaneous fermentation in neutral oak with indigenous yeasts,
Aging: in partially filled neutral oak
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“a far l’amore comincia tu”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Mourvèdre, Ugni Blanc, Grenache Noir, Syrah
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: 14 day co-maceration of Ugni Blanc, Mourvèdre, and Grenache Noir, direct press of Syrah and Grenache Noir
Aging: in neutral oak
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Falaises”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: calcareous clay, granite, schist
Average Age of Vines: 40 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: 8 day, semi-carbonic maceration of Grenache and Syrah, spontaneous co-fermentation in old barrels with indigenous yeasts
Aging: 9 months in old barrels
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Cicle”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Clairette, Cinsault
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: sand, gneiss
Average Age of Vines: 45 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: 50% co-maceration, 50% direct press, 7 month spontaneous fermentation in barrels with indigenous yeasts
Aging: 3 months in stainless steel
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Les Sables”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Clairette Blanche
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: sand, gneiss
Average Age of Vines: 40 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: direct press, spontaneous fermentation in fiber glass tanks with indigenous yeasts
Aging: in fiberglass tanks
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Levat”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Grenache Noir, Cinsault, Grenache Blanc, Picpoul, Clairette
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: sand, gneiss
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: co-maceration, direct press of Grenache Noir and Cinsault, spontaneous fermentation in stainless steel with indigenous yeasts
Aging: in stainless steel
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Oursin”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: sand, gneiss
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: 50%, 7 day co-maceration, spontaneous fermentation in barrels with indigenous yeasts
Aging: in barrels
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Verres”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Grenache Noir, Grenache Blanc, Counoise, Roussanne, Syrah, Bourboulenc, Cinsault
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: sand, gneiss
Average Age of Vines: 70 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: 10 day co-maceration of Grenache Noir and Grenache Blanc, 8 day co-maceration of Counoise and Roussanne, 5 day co-maceration of Bourboulenc and Cinsault
Aging: in barrels
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Ampli”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Carignan, Bourboulenc
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: sand, gneiss
Average Age of Vines: 61 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: 8 day co-maceration, spontaneous fermentation in stainless steel with indigenous yeasts
Aging: 9 months in stainless steel
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“BIM”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Grenache, Carignan, Mourvèdre
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 80 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: carbonic maceration, spontaneous fermentation in stainless steel with indigenous yeasts
Aging: in stainless steel
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Les Sables”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Clairette, Grenache Blanc, Picpoul, Vermentino, Sauvignon Blanc, Roussanne
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 80 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: semi-carbonic maceration in stainless steel
Aging: in old oak
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Marroca”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Mourvèdre, Roussanne
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 80 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: semi-carbonic maceration in stainless steel
Aging: in old oak
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none
“Les Sabots”
Region: Rhône
Grape: Mourvèdre, Roussanne
Vineyard Size: 5 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 80 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: manual
Winemaking: semi-carbonic maceration in stainless steel
Aging: in old oak
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: none