For fifteen years now, Hugues Noël has been providing the Castellane neighborhood with his supernatural juices sourced from the various regions of France and abroad. A family-oriented but rigorous approach that combines major labels (Gros, Ramonet, Joly…) and rising estates (Laura David in Touraine, Alice and Olivier de Moor in Chablis, Frisach in Catalonia…) with a single mantra: drink the best that life has to offer! The owner, backed up by the endlessly chatty wine expert Luca Chalamet, has equal time for everyone, no matter their budget, suggesting everything from luxury bottles (like the Richebourg from Gros for… €850) to a few bottles for friends (including La Partouze, a Gard blend from the Domaine du Petit Oratoire for €13). Want a hot tip? Grab lunch there during the week (while popping open a bottle from the shop for a €8 corkage fee) or go on Thursday nights when it turns into a wine bar with guest winemakers. // A.A.
The bullet-proof bottle: L’Insolente, a Chenin from Laura David (€17).
