
In 2005, Nicolas Gonin set up his own business by taking over his uncle's vineyards. The vineyard was then too small for him to obtain the status of winegrower, so he decided to rent plots to about twenty different owners. He then planted 4.5 ha of local grape varieties such as Altesse, Mondeuse and rarer, even forgotten grape varieties, Verdesse, Mècle and Persan to form an estate that currently extends over nearly 6 ha and has been in organic farming since 2012.
Nicolas Gonin is passionate about ampelography. More than fifteen grape varieties were once grown in the north of Isère, in what is now known as the Balmes Dauphinoises: Altesse, Verdesse, Viognier, Jacquère, Bia, Plant Guillet (Romorantin) for the whites and Mondeuse, Persan, Mècle, Salagnin (Robin noir), Servanin, Corbeau, Durif, Joubertin, Peloursin, Chatus, Syrah... for the reds.
After visiting many small vineyards for family consumption, Nicolas Gonin found 150 strains of Mècle and many vines of Servanin, two grape varieties considered lost except in the ampelographic collection of the Domaine de Vassal, in Marseillan-Plage.
He then found 3 other "lost" grape varieties in the south of Isère: Onchette, Sérénèze and Plant d'Apremont Motz.
In 2010, he managed to (re)register several grape varieties in the national catalogue, which allowed him to cultivate Mècle, Robin Noir and Bia in Vin de France. He is currently the only Mècle producer whose first harvest will take place in 2017.
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