What is Trousseau grape?

Trousseau is one of those grapes that wine lovers discover and never forget. Grown on just 200 hectares in France's Jura region — one of the country's smallest and most fascinating wine areas — it produces pale, aromatic reds that are utterly unlike anything else.

The village of Montigny-lès-Arsures, near Arbois, is considered the spiritual home of Trousseau. The grape needs the warmest, best-drained sites in the Jura — red marl and gravel soils — to ripen fully. It's pickier than its Jura stablemate Poulsard (which grows almost anywhere) but rewards good sites with more colour, structure, and complexity.

Tasting Trousseau for the first time is a revelation. It's pale — think light ruby, almost transparent at the edge — but packed with flavour: wild strawberry, redcurrant, white pepper, peony, and a stony minerality. It sits somewhere between Pinot Noir and Cabernet Franc in style, with a silky texture that's immediately appealing.

The natural wine movement has put Trousseau on the map. Jura producers like Stéphane Tissot and Domaine de la Tournelle make site-specific Trousseau wines that have become cult bottles, sought after by sommeliers worldwide. These wines show that great terroir expression doesn't require famous grape varieties.

Interestingly, the grape also exists in Portugal (called Bastardo) where it's a minor component of Port blends, and in Spain's Galicia (as Merenzao). But nowhere does it express itself as purely as in the Jura.

Pair it with Comté cheese, smoked sausages, roast chicken, grilled salmon, or wild mushrooms — all foods that suit its gentle structure and aromatic personality.