At this small shop in Poligny, we come for the finely aged Comté, and we leave with a bottle of Kagami in hand! The secret behind this micro-cave with a wooden-barrel-style ceiling, located across from the village church? The history of the place that’s been passed down over three generations of a family dedicated to good cheeses and natural wines, currently run by Philippe Bouvret, whose rather chilly welcome is the natural result of having to constantly turn away people seeking out exceptional bottles. Like this young German collector, who was sent to examine the seventeen-page catalog at the shop entrance just like everyone else, where a dozen themed categories combine said nuggets with less-prestigious bottles. In the general lot, we noticed a 2014 Chardonnay from local winemaker Pierre Overnoy (€120), Les Noëls de Montbenault, a 2016 Angevin Chenin by Richard Leroy (€85), or even Les Vignes de mon Père, a 2002 Savagnin-vert from Jean-François Ganevat (€225). Only very fine vintages, protected by the shop’s shrewd Cerberus who, for a renowned bottle, will force you to leave with eleven other less well-known bottles. // R.P.
The bullet-proof bottle: For wine fanatics, an Entre deux bleus, a 2017 Savagnin from the Japanese-Jurassian winemaker Kenjiro Kagami (€120, in a case worth… €530).
