LES LUNES / POPULIS
I met Shaunt and Diego in November 2016 at the Raw Wine Fair in Brooklyn. After days of tasting and drinking and ingesting, my palate was getting a little exhausted. You can only taste so many wines with overt volatile acidity before you spiral into a natural wine depression, and crave mass produced Californian Chardonnay. Then I tasted the wines from Les Lunes and felt re-inspired and refreshed.
In California, there is a massive divide between grape growers and winemakers. Most winemakers merely purchase grapes, but do none of the farming themselves. This disconnect from the land has hindered Californians’ understanding of their terroir. This wacky duo has opted to lease small vineyard plots and get their hands dirty. They convert these sites to organic/biodynamic farming, limit water, and forgo harsh and unnecessary sprays. Through thoughtful farming, they end up with extremely clean, balanced grapes which allows them to do much less in the winery. They sell off some of the grapes to likeminded winemakers in order to fund their passion project.
For their entry level project (Populis) they work closely with a handful of their favorite farmers around northern California. In particular, Larry Venturi has mentored them and provided them with gorgeous Zinfandel. These collaborators are mostly dry farming, using organic preparations.
GROWN AND MADE ON THE TRADITIONAL LANDS OF THE: CENTRAL & NORTHERN POMO | SOUTHERN POMO | ME-WUK (COAST MIWOK) | GRATON RANCHERIA
2022 cosmic blend
This wine is made from Cabernet Sauvignon (56%) from Marcheschi Vineyard in Alexander Valley AVA, as well as Stone Barn and Locke Vineyard further south in Sonoma Valley AVA; Zinfandel (19%) from Dogali Vineyard in Redwood Valley AVA; Merlot (11%) from Lolonis Vineyard in Redwood Valley AVA; and a small amount of Pinot Gris from Heringer Vineyard in Clarksburg AVA. Shaunt & Diego manage the farming for all Sonoma sites, relying exclusively on organic practices, spraying based on the lunar calendar, implementing cover crops, and limiting irrigation to 2-3 times per vintage. The components from Mendocino and Yolo County are from old vines, farmed by their friends and mentors employing organic practices as well. The majority of the red grapes were direct pressed but a minor component was fermented on skins in tank for up to two weeks. The Pinot Gris was destemmed and macerated for five days before being pressed off. The components were all aged separately in a combination of tank and barrel before the final blend was made. 18ppm of SO2 was added at bottling. 1261 cases were produced. 12.5% ABV
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $36.00 CAD
CSPC: 793002
2021 populis skin chardonnay
Charlie Barra (Barra Vineyard) has been farming this site for over sixty years. He was an early adopter of organics in California and goes above and beyond to ensure the health of his vineyard. This block of Chardonnay was planted in 1972 in Mendocino’s Redwood Valley. The remainder of the grapes come from Devito Vineyard, lovingly farmed by Pete Johnson in Mendocino near Ukiah. 2/3rd of the grapes were fermented whole cluster while the final 1/3rd was direct pressed. The two components were blended after a short élevage. 12.5% ABV
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $38.00 CAD
CSPC: 873061
2021 ASTRAL BLEND
This wine comes from sites Shaunt & Diego farm themselves: Kimberly, Bottage, Bruce, and Marcheschi Vineyards. Through a combination of thoughtful cover crops and composting to increase organic matter, they’ve been able to reduce watering drastically with the ultimate goal being dry- farming. This wine is made from Pinot Noir (30%), destemmed, and fermented on skins for five days in open top tank with gentle cap management. Zinfandel (30%) sees three disparate treatments: direct press, destemmed and macerated on skins, and as a co-fermentation with Sangiovese (10%). Chardonnay (24%) was partially direct pressed and partially skin fermented for two weeks before being pressed off. The final component is made from short-macerated Syrah (5%). The wines are all aged independently in tank and barrel until blending and bottling (unfined, unfiltered, 18ppm SO2) in January. 12.5% ABV
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $36.00 CAD
CSPC: 793003
2021 populis reversee
This wine was historically Carignan dominant, but the new blend features a heavy dose of Zinfandel (72%) and Barbara (14%) as well. Grown in Mendocino County, 1/3 of the grapes are direct pressed to decrease the skin-to-juice ratio during fermentation. This results in a less extracted style of wine.
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $33.00 CAD
CSPC: 859456
2020 populis sauvignon blanc
This wine comes from two different sources. Venturi Vineyard, located just north of Ukiah, features Pinole series gravely loam composed of sandstone, shale, and quartz. Larry Venturi’s family planted this site in the 40s, and today he carries on the tradition of organic dry farming. At 70+ years old, these are some of the longest-lived Sauvignon Blanc vines in California. Upton Vineyard is in Redwood Valley. Its higher elevation and proximity to the mountains make it a cooler site. The 60 years old vines are also deeply rooted in Pinole soils. Whole clusters were pressed into tank before being settled and racked. Fermentation and élevage take place in stainless steel before bottling with minimal SO2.