Could Savoie be the new Jura?

Escalating interest in one French wine region on the secondary market is causing some collectors to ask whether Savoie could be the next big thing for fine wine.

According to fine wine trading platform iDealwine, interest has skyrocketed in wines from Savoie over the last 12 months, causing some collectors to ask whether this region in the French Alps could be “the new Jura”.

“The highest growth in value we’ve seen in the last year is for Savoie in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, southeastern France, for which prices have jumped by 67% to reach an average bottle price of €85 (+25.7%),” Órlaith Moore Smith, international marketing manager for iDealwine, tells the drinks business.

The price leap has brought Savoie wines “level with the prices we see in the Loire Valley, where the average bottle price is around €86,” says Moore Smith.

The comparison between Savoie and Jura is really more about what they have in common at auction rather than similarities between wine styles.

“Both are very small wine regions, with limited production (Savoie produces just 0.5% of France’s wine), but are nonetheless home to exceptionally talented winemakers with an affinity for natural production methods, many of whom have developed cult followings around the world,” says Moore Smith.

The increased demand suggests that collectors are cottoning on to the fact that Savoie is a haven of natural wine, with low prices to match.

“One iconic name stands out in this region and was the cause of several bidding wars on iDealwine: Prieuré Saint-Christophe,” reveals Moore Smith.

Founder Michel Grisard’s hand-crafted biodynamic wines have become collectors’ items, as the estate was later sold to the Giachino family, whose first vintage was 2015. A bottle of Grisard’s Mondeuse 1988 sold via iDealwine in August 2023 to a private collector for €689, while 145 bottles from this same estate were also sold for an average bottle price of €284 (an increase of 11.9%), and “far ahead of the next runner-up”, reveals Moore Smith.

Grisard is also linked to another Savoie star, Domaine des Ardoisières, having founded the 16-hectare estate in 1998 on the steep slopes of the Allobroges. “The estate produces stunning wines made from a symphony of local Savoyard grape varieties, including Jacquère, Roussanne, Altesse, Mondeuse Noire, Mondeuse Blanche, Chardonnay and Gamay,” says Moore Smith. “The average price per bottle rose by 29.3% last year to €62.”

While volumes from Savoie are still low and it remains quite niche “nonetheless, a look at the figures tells us that the most discerning wine enthusiasts are indeed paying attention,” says Moore Smith.

Although three-quarters of Savoie wine production is white, the share between red and white expressions is much more even at auction (45% for the former, 48% for the latter on iDealwine), with bidders often opting for local varieties including Mondeuse.