Prime 2025

Les Frères Souliers (the Souliers brothers) make wine in the southern Rhône with a deliberately committed, ecosystem-first outlook. Their vines are farmed organically and along biodynamic lines, leaning on the emblematic grape varieties of southern France.

In the cellar the hand is light: fermentations begin spontaneously on indigenous yeasts and sulfur is held to a bare minimum, with the aim of honest, additive-free natural wines made with genuine conviction.

Not the star of the show, but that's the point.

A big ol glass of cooked strawberry juice, unfiltered, priced for the twenty-something with dreams of political revolution.

We picked up our bottle of Prime from a small wine bar in Changy, Burgundy owned by a Californian who has rejected the ideals of capitalism and opened shop in the most working class town of the region. Mainly focusing on natural wine, our visit was punctuated with inter-table conversation that made my Australian-Brit-Finn-self shudder. Patrons included a fun scientist, families, a British brewer, and gruff locals chasing a final beer when the pub next door closed.

Price Paid: 16 euros
Value Gained: an increased appreciation for the traditions of the French Peasantry