Domaine Julien Guillon

On the steep foothills of Valais, in the midst of the Swiss Alps, mechanized agriculture has never been an option. Pruning, tending, and harvesting must all be done by hand—and that’s how Julien prefers it. The intimacy of care this landscape demands results in wines rich in story, connection, and place.

Natural wine is wine as nature intended. It's alive—each bottle capturing an irreplaceable moment in the Domaine Julien Guillon story and the perennial history of the Valais—teeming with the life of grapes, wild yeasts, and vibrant soil microbiology that define these remarkable vintages.

The art of natural wine is to unveil the elemental property of each and every grape—to capture the soul of the fruit. As L’Oursin’s wine director once perfectly described; natural wine is about letting the wine “be what it has to be. Not what you want it to be.” It is for this reason that the creation of each Domaine Julien Guillon wine is more a journey of discovery than a stage managed production. Julien shapes his vineyard and vintages with care, but he's also careful to respond to the idiosyncrasies of each harvest, working with the grapes, soil, and ecology of Domaine Julien Guillon as he crafts each cuvée. It's fitting then that Domaine Julien Guillon bears Julien’s name, because he truly cannot be separated from the land and vines he cares for nor the wines he curates. He tends his vineyards with paternal care—lovingly and quite seriously referring to the vines as his daughters—and he often comes to sleep on the vineyard floor when he needs to clear his mind and refocus. Julien buried pink quartz in each corner of his vineyard to promote positive energy, and he is religiously devoted to biodynamic practices and an outspoken critic of all things chemical.