Whispers from the Limestone Hills: Domaine Overnoy Arbois Pupillin 2018

Dawn in the Glass

In the glass, the wine shimmers a pale garnet, as transparent as dawn’s first blush over an orchard shrouded in mist. A gentle splash into a wide-bowled Burgundy stem releases a breath of wild strawberry, damp earth, and the faint saline trace of an ancient sea lingering in the Jura’s marl. Give it thirty minutes in a carafe at a cool 14 °C and it will loosen its shoulders, letting shy notes of rosehip, dried thyme, and a hint of orange zest unfurl like a page turned slowly. This is not a wine to rush. Its voice is quiet yet precise, each syllable placed with intent, the texture whispering across the palate like silk drawn over wood.

Where Hills and Vines Speak

From France’s eastern Jura, in the Arbois Pupillin appellation, this 2018 emerges from the revered Domaine Overnoy, a family estate legendary among natural wine devotees. The grape is Poulsard—pale-skinned, delicate, and fiercely expressive of its home. Here, limestone and marl soils meet a continental climate softened by protective hills, yielding fruit with ripeness balanced by a vital streak of acidity. Overnoy’s farming is rooted in organics, the vineyard rows alive with grasses, wild herbs, and bees. In the cellar, time and gravity do the work; fermentations are unhurried, guided by the rhythm of the seasons rather than the dictates of the market. The result is a wine that carries the truth of its land in every drop.

The Feather and the Spine

The first sip reveals a paradox of delicacy and persistence: featherlight on the palate, yet its flavours deepen with every moment held in the mouth. Tart cherry and pomegranate mingle with whispers of green tea, cedar shavings, and a fleeting touch of rose petal. The tannins are gauzy—more of a gentle frame than a grip—while a clean, vivid acidity forms the wine’s spine, ensuring poise. The warmth of 2018 lends a touch more fruit generosity than cooler years, yet balance holds firm. The finish lingers in a fine, savoury echo, like a bell tone slowly fading in a quiet chapel.

A Table Set in Harmony

This is a wine that calls for food as a haiku calls for silence around it—space for resonance. Begin with Jura’s own Mont d’Or cheese, baked in its spruce box until molten, accompanied by crusty country bread. Its creaminess floods the palate, softening the wine’s bright acid, while spruce and rind-funk meet Poulsard’s woodland tones. Or lay out a charcuterie plate—cured saucisson, cornichons, and a scattering of walnuts—salt and tang tightening the fruit, fat melting into its supple texture.

For a main, roast guinea fowl stuffed with porcini and chestnuts mirrors the wine’s earthiness, the stuffing’s nutty depth echoing its autumnal heart. From the Jura’s rivers, trout almondine kissed with butter and lemon brings bright, nutty counterpoint to the wine’s herbal lift and mineral thread.

Vegetarians can revel in a beetroot and walnut tart, its pastry’s golden flake playing to the wine’s red-fruited brightness, the walnut lending quiet gravity. Or a mushroom ragout over creamy polenta, where the umami is softened and lifted by Poulsard’s freshness.

Smaller indulgences delight too: roast root vegetables glazed in honey and mustard create a sweet-savory bridge, while pommes Anna—layer upon layer of buttery crisp—beckon the next sip. End without sweetness: choose Comté aged 18 months, its caramelised, nutty depth meeting the wine’s mineral finish like old friends exchanging a knowing glance.

The Promise of Return

I think of my brother, Dumuzi, in the years when vines bud and days run long; the table laid in his honour, the wine bright with the season’s hope. And I think of winters below, my ledger of names heavy with ink, waiting for the green to return. This bottle is such a promise—life will crest again, the vine will speak.

Treat it kindly: serve cool, let it breathe, and pour it into the vessel it deserves. Vivid now—a fine thread of 2018’s generosity and Jura’s precision—it will deepen over the next five to seven years, the fruit shading toward dried petals, forest humus, and the warm scent of autumn leaves. Open it now for its brightness, or in another season for its wisdom, but honour it with dishes that listen as much as they speak. In that balance, both wine and table will find their fullest voice.