Éric Texier Adèle Clairette 2023

Éric Texier was born in Bordeaux but did not come from a winemaking family. He worked as a nuclear engineer before abandoning his career in 1992 to pursue winemaking. He enrolled in oenology school in Bordeaux and interned at Verget in Mâcon under Jean-Marie Guffens, where he studied winemaking by day and read 19th-century handbooks at night to learn about long-lost vinification techniques.

Without family vineyards to inherit, Texier initially worked as a négociant, purchasing grapes from like-minded growers in the Rhône and Mâconnais while searching for his own land. His path changed when he met François Pouchoulin, known as the "Godfather of Brézème." This tiny appellation on the southernmost edge of the northern Rhône, on the left bank of the river in the Drôme, had nearly disappeared. In the mid-19th century, Brézème wines rivaled Hermitage, but by 1961 only a single hectare remained. With Pouchoulin's guidance, Texier eventually purchased a small parcel there, becoming instrumental in reviving the appellation.

Later, Texier and his wife Laurence acquired another plot in the Ardèche, in the Ouvèze valley near Saint-Julien-en-Saint-Alban. This site sits on the right bank of the Rhône with granite soils at higher elevation than Brézème. Together, Éric and Laurence run the estate as a team, traveling together to present their wines internationally.

Texier has farmed organically from the beginning and follows some biodynamic principles, though he remains undogmatic about certifications. In the cellar, he favors minimal intervention: hand-harvesting, whole-bunch pressing, spontaneous fermentation with indigenous yeasts, extended lees aging in cement tanks, and little to no sulfur additions. Wines are bottled unfined and unfiltered.

The portfolio includes whites from Clairette, Marsanne, and Roussanne, alongside reds from Syrah (which Texier sometimes labels as "Serine," the old local name). His work in Brézème and Saint-Julien-en-Saint-Alban has brought attention to these nearly forgotten corners of the Rhône Valley.

Saint-Julien-en-Saint-Alban sits in the Ardèche department of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, approximately 10 kilometers northeast of Privas and within easy reach of the A7 autoroute. The commune occupies roughly 10 square kilometers in the Ouvèze valley, on the western side of the Rhône River, with elevations ranging from 98 to nearly 700 meters. The territory lies between the granite massif of Saint-Cierge to the north and the limestone massif of Grads to the south.

Geographically, this area marks the southernmost edge of the northern Rhône Valley, occupying a transitional zone between the cooler northern appellations like Cornas and Saint-Joseph and the warmer southern Rhône. The vineyards share characteristics with their northern neighbors, granite soils and Syrah as the dominant red variety, but benefit from a warmer, sunnier microclimate due to the south-facing exposures and slightly higher altitude.

Roman remains discovered in the area suggest viticulture has existed here since antiquity. The granite subsoil, combined with good drainage and favorable sun exposure on the hillsides, creates conditions well-suited to both red and white grape varieties. Red wines from Saint-Julien-en-Saint-Alban are made entirely from Syrah (sometimes called Serine locally) and display a structured, tannic character comparable to Brézème, Cornas, or Saint-Joseph. White varieties including Clairette and Marsanne also perform well on the granitic clay-limestone soils.

Despite the quality of its wines, Saint-Julien-en-Saint-Alban does not fall within the Côtes du Rhône AOC boundaries. Wines produced here are typically labeled as Vin de France or under the broader regional designation. This administrative quirk has kept the area relatively unknown, though producers like Éric Texier have brought increasing attention to these hillside vineyards. The commune retains a rural character, with forests covering roughly half the land and vineyards planted on the well-exposed slopes above the village.