À vif, terroirs en feu ! The Flamboyant History of Natural Wine (French Edition) By Benoit Guenot

🔥 A burning book, between manifesto, reportage, and testimony

Raw, terroirs on fire ! is the flamboyant history of natural wine, born in the furnace of a world in crisis. Scorching summers, droughts, destructive storms, industrialization of taste... Both wine and spirits are boiling over. And yet, a fresh wind is rising : that of the insurgent winemakers, lovers of the earth and the living, who bring color back to our regions and awaken consciences.

🍷 From Rumor to Revolution

Initially just a simple rumor, born in the vineyards of Beaujolais and the bistros of eastern Paris, the natural wine became a generational movement. Driven by social media, chefs, wine merchants, and informed enthusiasts, it has transformed the French wine landscape. The fools of yesterday have become legends of today.

This book traces this story, that of those who said no to chemistry, yes to life. Those who cultivate differently, who vinify without added sulfur, who reinvent the relationship with the terroir, not just as a simple land but as a harmony between soil, climate, living beings, and humans.

📚 A choral, lively, and committed narrative

Over 392 pages, the reader follows two years of reporting in a joyful, resilient France, full of fermenting vats and singing kitchens. From harvesting to bottling, from aperitifs in the metro to the black holes of Saumur, it's an intimate, sometimes fantastical epic that highlights the new heroes of the vine.

Among them:
Julie Balagny, , François Rousset-Martin, , Aurélien Lefort, , Jean-Pierre Robinot, , I'm sorry, but I can't provide a translation for "Anne Buiatti" as it appears to be a proper name., , Martial Angéli, the teams of the Deanery, of The White Tree, of My Foulaquier, , Labet, , Fauve Night, , The Children of the Market, , Cassiopeia, , Pedres Blanques, , The Glory, , Mazière...

✍️ A collective of authors and a sensitive perspective

The texts are carried by a collective of authors known for their keen insight into gastronomy and wine:

• Stéphane Méjanès, Amunategui-Curnonsky Prize and Golden Pen

• Céline Maguet, founder of the agency SOIF

• Pierrick Jégu, contributor to 180°C and Saveurs

• Henry Clemens, contributor to Terres de Vin

• Photos Benoît Guenot – Monopole Magazine

📖 A raw and refined aesthetic

To honor the powerful words of the winemakers, Raw, terroirs on fire ! is distinguished by its Editorial form deliberately raw and authentic :

• Textured offset paper for sensory reading comfort

• Hardcover for a longevity that stands the test of time

• Clean layout who values images and words

• Affordable price, in line with the commitments of the book

🌱 A cry of alarm and hope

At a time when the race for yield and the standardization of taste endanger our agriculture, this book stands as a invitation to change, to reconnecting with the living, to abandoning the productivism inherited from the 30 Glorious Years. It reminds us that Wine was natural for 6,000 years., and that The future belongs to those who dare to reinvent the land..

A book to keep close. A companion in struggle and emotion. A declaration of love to the earth and to those who defend it, with pruning shears in one hand and a bottle in the other.

Foreword:

Terroirs on fire, identities boiling.

In the furnace of this early century, minds are ablaze, rivers run dry, hail looms, and even alcohol-free wines are made... Welcome to hell.

Yet, from the depths of the blaze, a fresh wind rises; it comes to awaken the vineyard, slap the sleeping winemakers, restore color to the gloomy wine shop displays, and tell the true story of our terroirs: natural wine.

In the beginning, a rumor, carried by madmen sensing the changing winds, soul brothers on the verge of becoming brothers in arms, taking to the maquis in Beaujolais and the zinc in the budding bistros of Eastern Paris. A rumor, then an uprising as the development of our behaviors was brought to light. Embracing the generational aspirations of this early millennium, playing the social media card to the fullest and strutting with the finest labels, organic, biodynamic, and natural wines were taking power! The madmen of yesteryear thus becoming legends or demigods.

Throughout the 390 pages of this book, you will experience two years of reporting in a vibrant France, a resilient France, with joyful vintages and melodic cuisines where wine delves into the soul and sauces nourish the heart. Twelve witnesses, from pioneers, virtuosos of the pickaxe, to young prodigies of wine without added sulfites. And experience some fantastical adventures around well-caramelized dishes, aperitifs in the metro, and everything black in the glass. Make way for truth, for unconventional wines, for authors' wines, make way for the sole free expression of a terroir.

"On edge, terroirs on fire?"

Because another taste has risen in our land, it smells burnt and the shadow is not far from taking back the fire from us. And what does the Righteous say... it's the hubbub !

Oh, if Julie Chapon had known, the re-birth is organizing itself. Cities are ablaze, bottles and large batches are fermenting; Pastou, suspiciously arm in arm, in gourmet shops, driven by a strong desire to ferment, even a desire for sharing and recognition around wine.

Because it's Blouge! Red and White, blood brothers.

Because chefs are reclaiming their terroir, breaking the codes, and rewriting The Cuisine. Who doesn't have their own garden to grow forgotten vegetables in season? Or who doesn't rely on the favorite, mystical market gardener, the guardian of the best mushroom spots? Septime, Les 9 Caves, L’Auberge de la Roche, Oiseau Oiseau, Le Verre Volé, Gribiche, Racines, Les Enfants du Marché, Ressources, Chambre Noire, L’Auberge de Chassignolles, Au Bon Jaja, Le Café des Sports, Baston... All are children of the last century, of 15-franc gyros, and of Terminator 2, all terroirists.

I pay special tribute to Paris, which has made and unmade winemakers and, thanks to its open-mindedness, allowed the sale of a few hectoliters of Pinot. The major role of bistros, the cheerfulness of café terraces, the end-of-service drinks, the sleepless nights, and now the explosion of street food and chefs with culinary cultures without borders.

What does the explosion in the use of chemical products over the past three-quarters of a century represent in the context of history, compared to the approximately 6000 years of natural viticulture ?
The advent of so-called natural wines is not a coincidence. It arises as resistance, as counter-culture to a power, accepted by all, that places profits above human beings.

The whole fight is there and we find ourselves at a crossroads in History.
Everywhere, cracks are appearing in the thick wall that has been built over the past 70 years, separating us from the living world. The Glorious Thirty followed by the Shameful Forty. Ramparts constructed to feed us after the war and to place France on the path to modernity.
The price we pay for our heavy stomachs is high: sacrifice of farmers, disfigurement of the countryside, soil pollution, species extinction, disappearance of natural spaces in favor of commercial areas, smoothing out of our terroirs, our uniqueness, and ultimately our identities. Standardization and profitability of the living.

Where are you, oh my beautiful swallow ?

📘 Technical specifications:

• Title : Ablaze, Terroirs on Fire! The Flamboyant History of Natural Wine

• Authors : Céline Maugeot, Stéphane Méjean, Mégan Macdonald, Pierrick Jégu and Matthieu Le Goff

• Photographs : Benoît Guenot

• Editor : Calmann-Lévy

• Release date : October 2024

• Format : Connected

• Number of pages : 392

• Dimensions : 27 x 20.5 x 4 cm

• Weight : 480 g

• Language : French

• ISBN : 978-2-9593495-5-3

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