Without Vincent Bonnal, “canons” would simply not exist! Indeed, a few years ago, this guy with an expressive face and a sharp tongue was the first to fill our glasses with natural wines and our hearts with his communicative energy. These totally new wines were to shake us up and convince us once and for all that a truth is to be found there, at the intersection of atypical and singular vintages, of practices respectful of the living world and of a great understanding of the terroirs.

Born into a family of winegrowers, Vincent avoided the vine for a long time out of pure contradiction. However, after studying chemistry and becoming aware of his responsibilities, he left everything behind to devote himself to oenology, and then travelled the world’s vineyards before settling in China for six years. Over there, he was confronted with a totally new and different culture, which gave him a taste for perpetual questioning.

On his return to France in 2012, Vincent’s brother suggested that he take over the Domaine de Pelissols, a family heritage in his native Languedoc, in Bédarieux (Hérault). A dreamer and a bit crazy, he accepted on the sole condition that he would do things his way: work alone, like a craftsman, organically with a biodynamic approach, and carry out natural winemaking, with no added oenological inputs.

Vincent cultivates 6 hectares in the Orb Valley. This privileged location, between the sea and the mountains, offers a cool climate that is adapted to unusual grape varieties for the region, such as Chardonnay. These terroirs, recognised since Roman times, produce wines with a strong personality, with a fresh and delicately mentholated structure. Vincent’s wines resemble and please him: on the one hand, elegant red wines, racy and made for ageing, and on the other hand, juices favouring the freshness of the fruit, such as his rosé or his white wine, which are very much at ease with the spice of the Chinese cuisine to which Vincent has been converted.