DOMAINE DE LA CRAS
Marc Soyard is one of the most talented and hardworking young Vignerons in Burgundy. At least that’s what the city of Dijon thought when they chose Marc to farm 8 hectares of historically revered, but unkempt vineyard just outside the city in the Coteaux de Dijon. Choosing to safeguard a huge swathe of agricultural land rather than see it consumed by the Dijon sprawl, the City advertised for young agriculteurs (including young Vignerons with no family connection to wine) to take on the challenge. Marc applied, he was chosen, made insanely good wine, which we bought and are now bringing to you. And in fact there is not a huge amount more to add.
Marc learned his craft formally at Beaune’s Lycée Viticole then got real dirt under his fingernails at the Vins Des Viennes négociant project in the Rhône (under the super talented eyes of Pierre Gaillard, Francois Villard and Yves Cuilleron) and most recently with Jean Yves Bizot (husband to another of Burgundy’s natural wine pioneers, Claire Naudin) at Domaine Bizot. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it was Marc’s time with Domaine Bizot that had the biggest impact and his wines display a deftness and purity associated with only the very best organic viticulture and the new-wave of low-fi, traditional winemaking.
Vinification is done with natural yeasts, with élevage in a mix of new and old barrels. Marc often experiments with different types of wood such as chestnut and acacia.
