Cherche Midi Story
It seems that everyone is always looking for a value-driven organic wine with a nice label, and after years of looking, we’ve never been able to find one that hit the mark. We decided it was time to get more involved, and after a visit to the Provençal village of Montfrin over a year ago, we chose to embark on a collaboration.
After decades working in fashion and film, Jean-René de Fleurieu returned to his ancestral village of Montfrin and planted over one hundred hectares each of vineyards and olive trees. His vision was to produce organic products in large quantities at good prices, which would have an important secondary effect of creating local jobs and preserving the agricultural environment around Montfrin. Additionally, Benjamin Beguin joined the team early on and brought technical expertise in vineyard work and vinification. Recently, Jean-René’s daughter Aurore has become involved as well.
We gave them a challenge to produce a great tasting wine at a price even lower than their regular wines. Montfrin sits at the intersection of the Côtes du Rhône and Costières de Nîmes, and their estate already produces great wines from each of these famous appellations. The key to meeting our challenge was to work with vineyard sites outside of the appellation zones, which normally would be sold off to négociants and blended into the ocean of anonymous French wine.
After a few marathon blending sessions, we were able to enjoy the first bottles of Cherche Midi red and rosé cuvées, which are finally available to everyone. In colloquial French, a ‘cherche midi’ (‘noon-seeker’) is someone who looks to invite themselves in for a free lunch, so this bottle is a perfect tool to have on hand for all the ‘cherche midis’ out there.