Domaine Belema Sans Pareil 2022
Domaine Belema Sans Pareil 2022 – alternate view 2
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Domaine Belema Sans Pareil 2022

Domaine Belema
$28.00

Grape: Étraire de la Dhuy, Mondeuse
Vintage: 2022
Type: Red

This red wine represents an unprecedented alpine blend of equal parts étraire de la dhuy and mondeuse from young estate vines. Yann Pernuit cultivates the plots on steep limestone scree soils in Savoie to encourage high natural acidity. The hand-harvested fruit undergoes separate whole-bunch fermentations inside terracotta amphorae, lasting twelve days for the Étraire and ten days for the mondeuse. The lots are pressed and blended at the décuvage before aging for eight months in amphorae.

It pours a bright ruby color with violet reflections, opening with expressive aromatics of wild pomegranate, sour cherry, and cracked black pepper. On the palate, the light-to-medium body is juicy and precise, balancing crunchy red fruit with a fine-grained tannin structure. Savory notes of mountain herbs and damp earth add depth across the fluid mouthfeel. A clean, central thread of alpine acidity runs through the center. It finishes bone-dry, leaving a light mineral trail.

Winery

Domaine Belema is Yann Pernuit’s small project in Ayse, in the alpine landscape of Haute-Savoie. Before beginning the label in 2019, he worked at Château de Mérande and alongside Dominique Belluard, gaining extensive experience with the region’s grapes and biodynamic farming. The first wines used locally purchased fruit while Yann established his own vineyards. Gringet, Altesse, Mondeuse and the rare Étraire de la Dui connect the domaine to Savoie’s diverse and sometimes fragile vineyard heritage.

Organic and biodynamic practices guide the work, with attention to the living landscape around the young plantings. In the cellar, limited intervention and vessels such as sandstone amphorae and terracotta eggs allow the grapes to develop without heavy oak influence. The range includes Gringet in different forms, from Imago to the skin-contact Ab Ovo, alongside Altesse and local reds. These wines present Savoie as a place of varied textures and serious vineyard expression, carrying forward the region’s traditions through a grower building something distinctly his own.