Sebastien Bobinet followed his grandfather into the vineyard and cellar from the age of seven. As the eighth generation of his family to make wine in Saumur, he had to fight to do it his own way, breaking with local convention to farm organically from the very start. His partner Emeline Calvez took a far less linear route: she was a professional dancer until an injury redirected her toward wine.
Backstory
Sebastien took over the family vineyards in 2002 and has farmed organically ever since, influenced by the Loire natural-wine pioneer Olivier Cousin. Emeline trained as a sommelier at the University of Suze-la-Rousse and worked at La Quincave, a natural-wine bar in Paris, where she discovered the style, before joining Sebastien in the vines and on the label. Together they have built one of Saumur's reference points for honest, low-intervention wine.
The Region
The domaine sits in Saumur, in the Loire Valley of France, on the route de Montsoreau within Saumur-Champigny territory. Its historic cellar is carved directly into the tuffeau, the soft white limestone of the Saumur coteaux, which gives naturally cool, humid, and stable conditions for fermentation and aging. That same limestone defines the structure and freshness of the local wines.
Vineyards & Farming
The estate covers roughly 3.8 hectares. It began with 1.8 hectares in 2002, with about 2 more added under tenancy in 2010. Plantings center on Cabernet Franc and Chenin Blanc, with smaller amounts of Pineau d'Aunis, Gamay, and Cot. Farming is organic, and the couple's stated aim is to produce without destroying life or harming people, relying on Bordeaux mixture, herbal teas, and plant-based preparations rather than machinery or synthetic products.
Winemaking
The work happens mostly in the soil and the vine, with minimal intervention in the cellar. The couple introduced carbonic maceration in 2007 for their lighter, juicier reds, and age their wines in barrel within the tuffeau cellar. The guiding principle is the simplest, healthiest path from grape to bottle.
The Wines
The range moves from easygoing, glou-glou bottlings such as Piak! and Le Temps Est Bon to more structured, age-worthy cuvees like Les Gruches, alongside bottlings including Amateus Bobi, Echalier, and Du Rififi a Beaulieu. Across the lineup the wines stay fresh, digestible, and clearly stamped by their tuffeau origins.
