Julien Courtois

Julien Courtois, living wines in the heart of Sologne

Le Clos de la Bruyère, a family story

For the Courtois family, living wine is a family affair! The son of Claude Courtois, a leading figure in the Loire’s low-intervention wine movement and founder of Les Cailloux du Paradis, Julien Courtois grew up among the vines. After learning the craft from his father and working in Burgundy, he established his own estate, Le Clos de la Bruyère, in 1998, in Soings-en-Sologne. Today, he and his partner Heidi Kuka farm 4.5 hectares of vines, following the same philosophy as his father, but with a personality all his own.

Living vines and distinctive grape varieties

No synthetic chemicals are used here: the vines are tended in harmony with natural balances, using, among other things, plant-based preparations. Yields are low, and the grapes are harvested entirely by hand at full maturity. Julien grows a wonderful variety of grapes, including some that are rather rare: Menu Pineau, Romorantin, Chenin, Gamay, Côt, Gascon, and Chaudenay. There are even ungrafted vines, including Menu Pineau planted in 1978. A vineyard apart, where every grape variety retains its place and identity.

Unadorned wines and labels by Heidi

In the cellar, Julien carries on this work with winemaking free of chemical inputs, natural fermentations, and ageing that gives the wines time to develop. The cuvées Originel, Autochtone, Résonance, Ancestral, and Éléments showcase the estate’s full diversity, from characterful whites to deep, sometimes surprising, always distinctive reds. And the bottles themselves are impossible to miss: their magnificent black-and-white labels are designed by Heidi Kuka, who also brings her artistic touch to the venture. With just 8,000 to 10,000 bottles produced each year, Le Clos de la Bruyère remains a small-scale artisanal estate, true to its free-spirited, uncompromising vision of living wine.