Bel A Ciao, 2021 Orange Sémillon, France

Vinified as you would a red wine, protected with carbonic ice during the filling process, with 2 weeks of skin maceration of the Semillon must to extract the orange colour, before a gravity fed run off into a separate tank for 6 months at 5°C until bottling. If vintage conditions allow, there are no added sulfites in order to preserve the authenticity of the site and variety. A tiny amount of Sauvignon Blanc (2%) is added just before bottling to enhance the freshness and acidity.

Because of Olivier’s somewhat “revolutionary” approach to winemaking and love of breaking the rules, in such a traditional region, he created the Bel a Ciao label ... named after a revolutionary song which also features in La Casa de Papel on Netflix (you’ll need to Google it!). Here he produces an exciting Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc orange wine, with grapes sourced from a friend’s vineyard, which by 2021 will be organic. The Semillon grapes come from really healthy vineyards in the Entre-Deux-Mers, harvested in early September, a little later than other varieties. No added Sulfites are used during the harvesting process.