GRAPE VARIETAL
100% Jacquère, an Alpine white native to Savoie known for light body, modest alcohol, and a clean, mountain-fruit profile.
APPELLATION
Vin de Savoie Apremont AOP, from the Combe de Savoie near Chambéry; the zone includes the communes of Apremont, Les Marches, and Saint-Baldoph.
TERROIR
Clay-limestone parcels set over the limestone scree deposited by the 1248 collapse of nearby Mont Granier—well-drained soils and an Alpine foothills climate that favor brisk, finely etched whites.
VINIFICATION
Fermented in stainless steel to keep the variety’s clarity. WIlly’s Apremont is often gently nudged through malolactic conversion, and sees time on lees (without oak) for a lovely touch of texture.
TASTING NOTES
Citrus-led with lemon and lime, edging into white peach/nectarine; some bottlings show a gentle lemon-curd note from malolactic conversion, finishing dry with a stony, gravelly snap.
FOOD PAIRING
Spot-on with regional fare like lake fish and Savoyard fondue; also great with sushi, simple shellfish, and fresh goat cheeses.
For those who’ve been shopping at the AWM for more than a minute, you know Blanc et Fils is baked into AWM and RoR DNA thanks to Kate and Rise over Run. This white jewel from the Savoie was Kate’s first direct-import, and Willy’s wines remain a foundational pillar of what she does. We’re talking tiny vineyard lots, tended by hand—his hands—and offered only in Savoie and here in North Carolina. That narrow footprint isn’t a marketing gimmick; far from it. It’s the natural scale of a one-man craft that’s primarily built for neighbors and friends.
Willy wears two hats and does it with ease. By day he runs one of Savoie’s best wine shops—a front-row seat for championing the region’s growers. By morning and evening, he’s in his vines: about five hectares in the Apremont cru, tucked under the sheer north face of Mont Granier. The site is all broken rock and chalky rubble—calcareous soils that make Jacquère feel right at home.
Viticulture is pared back and practical: no chemical inputs, careful canopy work, and a steady hand on yields for Jacquère, a variety that can run wild if you let it. The goal is simple—clean fruit, reasonable ripeness, and a harvest that tastes like the slope it came from rather than the tools used to grow it.
In the cellar, Willy is a tinkerer with a curious streak. Fermentations are native and conducted in stainless steel; the wine is bottled directly off the lees. He coaxes a partial malolactic to run alongside primary—a neat bit of timing that adds a gentle mid-palate without dulling the wine’s fine line. Side note: he also released the first Crémant de Savoie in 2015, and his remains among the very few (perhaps the only) 100% Jacquère versions you’ll find in the U.S.
Vineyards in Apremont — AWM 2014 Buying trip to the Savoie
Blanc et Fils Apremont (100% Jacquère) is a Savoie celebration of lemon peel, green apple, and a light thread of stone-fruit, finishing with a whisper of Alpine herbs. The lees contact gives lends beautiful texture to the middle palate without adding weight. It’s dry, low-alcohol, and direct—built for the table and happy to be poured generously.
Food is where this shines. Go classic with lake fish, trout, or Savoyard fondue and raclette. Or take it a step further: sushi and sashimi, tempura, goat cheese tarts with herbs, Vietnamese herb salads with lime, or fried chicken on a Sunday afternoon. It’s the kind of everyday Alpine white we love—honest, useful, and uniquely available in Savoie and here in NC.