We are so thrilled to be able to have and to hold this incredible wine-like beverage.
As the creation of a dedicated natural wine mad professor and viticulturalist, L'antidote is a vision to us of a world to come where non-alcoholic drinks are afforded the same love, attention and dedication as the very best of wines - an agricultural product grounded in respect for the land and a philosophy of non-intervention in the expression of the fruit.
Domaine des Grottes are Gamay specialists, farming their land biodynamically in the heart of Beaujolais. On the land they're committed to biodiversity, careful use of resources, and growing a host of crops besides grapes - and in the winery they've got a bit of a cheeky experimental spirit.
L'antidote is their fully non-alcoholic offering made with a base of unfermented gamay noir juice, infused with a blend of herbs grown between the vines, and gently carbonated. It is an expression of the soil and the seasons where it is produced. And as it is neither fermented nor dealcholized, while it's not wine, it's incredible how it fulfils what wine is, the wine experience.
Medium bodied, frothy, a little sweet, the nose is savoury and herbal, followed by juicy juicy fruit on the palate providing weight and length. The ripeness of the fruit and the spicy and provocative aroma is positively delightful, entertaining us just as a wild fermented wine might. It's outrageous, we love it, we hope you will love it, and we hope it inspires a world to come of unfermented agricultural élevage.
