Grain de Vin

Mélanie and Vincent Zuber spent years working in some of Burgundy's finest cellars before founding their own low-intervention négoce project in 2022. The name, Grain de Vin, pays homage to the deep regional connections that the pair have made; in Mélanie’s words, “the fruit of all of the people we’ve met in the last two years.”

By day, Mélanie and Vincent are steeped in very different worlds in Burgundy; Mélanie works as the cheffe de cave (cellar master) of a very famous 150-year-old, 100-hectare family estate, while Vincent is the premier bottler of natural wine in the Côte d’Or for the best natural winemakers—including our very own Pierre-Henri Rougeot, who opened a bottle for us and first put us in touch.

It was only when we met Vincent in his family cellar that he revealed that we’ve been indirectly working together for years. (He is the silent vineyard partner in the “Tercet” project along with Marc Soyard!) When starting their project, Mélanie felt strongly about leaning into low/no sulfur winemaking—something that Vincent is happy and experienced enough to implement; after all, 16 years of botting natural Burgundian wines has taught him extreme precision. “You have to be meticulous when you’re working without sulfur,” he affirms.

In terms of their négoce venture, Mélanie likens their project to the hospitality world. “We like to compare working in wine to working in the kitchen; after working for years as a sous-chef, you want to start a restaurant that’s really yours,” she says.

The Grain de Vin lineup comprises Burgundies that are easy to love and easy to drink: Bourgogne Rouge et Blanc, Côtes de Nuits, and Hautes Côtes de Nuits. The pair do everything possible to keep prices reasonable—for example, eschewing the opportunity to work with Meursault, so as to keep the wines accessible.

Above all, Mélanie and Vincent's vision is something that feels both traditionally Burgundian and quite radical in the current landscape of blinging Burgundian wineries. After years of planning and preparing, Grain de Vin wines are finally ready to be shared with the world. We are delighted to be offering them in the early days of their project.