I found that tiny piece of paper, I've kept so long 2023 is a natural wine crafted by Anders Frederik Steen, in the Ardeche region in France. This white wine is made with Muscat and Pinot Gris grapes.
ONE PER ORDER
Anders Frederik Steen and Anne Bruun Blauert work out of Valvignères in the Ardèche, and their motto is "Nothing added. Nothing taken away." No wine is ever made twice, which is why the names keep changing, each one taken from a song lyric or a line of poetry. Much of the fruit comes from Jocelyne and Gérald Oustric at Domaine du Mazel and from the Bannwarth family in Alsace, alongside their own vines at Valgrand. Long slow pressings on an old press, and a long élevage in old wood with no topping up, are the house signature. No sulphur goes in, and neither does anything else.
Both grapes come from the Bannwarth family at Obermorschwihr in Alsace, pressed there before the wine travelled to the Ardèche. Anders and Anne describe it themselves:
“A blend of Muscat and Pinot Gris. As we do with most grapes and freshly pressed juice in Alsace, the grapes were pressed overnight, and the juice left for oxidation and start fermentation in open casks for a couple of days. This fermentation was followed by fermentation throughout the winter in a fiberglass tank outside, we did the soutirage in the spring of 2024 and left from there for another 2 years of élevage in old barrels, of cause without any topping up.
It's a blend in which Muscat in percentage is dominant, but flavor-wise are in the background. Very young this wine had a pronounced taste of Muscat, something that created an unbalance. With time the Pinot Gris have found its place and brought to wine a deeper fruit, reduced the florality of Muscat and added an umeboshi-like salty bitterness.”
Bottled at 13.5% alcohol. The words above are their own, from the 2026 release notes, and we have not yet tried this vintage ourselves.