The name Jolie-Laide loosely means pretty-ugly, a French term of endearment for something unconventionally beautiful, and it captures exactly what Scott and Jenny Schultz set out to make: distinctive wines from grapes most California producers overlook.
Backstory
Scott Schultz moved from Chicago to manage the beverage program at Thomas Keller's Bouchon in Napa Valley, then apprenticed widely, serving as cellar master at Realm and working with Arnot-Roberts and Pax Mahle on the Pax and Wind Gap labels. He and Jenny founded Jolie-Laide in 2010, making 500 cases in the first vintage and growing to around 3,000 cases.
The Region
Based in Sonoma County, California, the Schultzes work with a small group of growers across a wide arc of the state, from San Benito and Monterey Counties in the Central Coast, up through Sonoma, and north into Mendocino County.
Vineyards and Farming
Rather than farming a single estate, Jolie-Laide partners with growers at carefully chosen sites. The varieties are deliberately unusual: whites such as Aligote, Melon de Bourgogne, Pinot Gris and Trousseau Gris, and reds including Gamay, Valdiguie, Cinsault, Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre, Trousseau Noir, Cabernet Pfeffer and Poulsard.
Winemaking
The approach is minimal intervention. Grapes are often fermented whole cluster and foot crushed, ferments run on ambient yeasts, and aging takes place in neutral oak or concrete. The musts tend toward higher acidity, allowing no added sulfur at the press and only minimal sulfur at bottling.
The Wines
Each vintage carries unique label art by a different artist, reflecting the idea that no two bottlings are ever the same. The lineup ranges from a Trousseau Gris and skin-contact whites to Gamay and the Glou d'Etat red.
