It’s more than just a collection of wines
Hugh's Organic Wine Circle
I’m delighted to be launching Hugh’s Organic Wine Circle, a family of organic wines personally selected by me and pioneering wine-maker Vincent Chansault at Domaine Gayda in the Languedoc.
Starting with the 4 new River Cottage organic wines which we have created together, our choices will ripple out to bring you wines that we believe are not only delicious drinking, but also represent the forefront of sustainable winemaking, with grapes grown in harmony with nature.
Our first focus is The Languedoc, in southern France, a region which champions the making of outstanding organic wines, most of which are currently not widely known outside of France.
The past tradition of creating rich, full-bodied reds with relatively high ABV numbers is gradually being challenged here as a new generation of young viticulturists are in pursuit of lighter, brighter reds, and zestier, fresher whites. This is being achieved through the grape varieties being developed, the fermentation and maceration techniques being deployed, and unique, innovative blends of the resulting wines.
With our River Cottage wines, one more small but meaningful choice is not to use a foil capsule to cover the cork. By skipping this largely decorative element, we help reduce waste, lower our carbon footprint, and make bottle recycling easier — all without affecting the quality or aging of the wine. It’s a simple decision and we hope others may follow.
A key part of this project is to encourage wine lovers to be nature lovers too. Hence our labels are a celebration of some of the beautiful birds – the Woodlark, the Serin Finch, the Redstart, and the Blackcap Warbler – that are thriving among the vines. This is a testament to the Gayda team’s continuing work to enhance biodiversity, and support nature, by planting trees and hedgerows and rewilding key habitats between the estate’s network of small vineyards.
Our four chosen birds are not the most glamorous or colourful of the region, but rather what us birding enthusiast call Little Brown Jobs – LBJs.
Their success on the estate is an encouraging indicator of improving habitats, rich in insect life as well as nectar and seeds from a variety of wild flowers.
For me LBJ doesn’t just stand for Little Brown Jobs, it also refers to the wonderful wines we are bringing you. We hope you will enjoy our Lovely Bottles of Joy for many years to come!
