Ten vintages with martin texier
We sat down to chat with Martin Texier about how his project has evolved over the years.
Interview with Martin (Oct. 17th)
It’s been a while since we sent out a quarterly newsletter, so in honor of OND/Quarter 4 2025, here is a dispatch from Martin Texier (Brézème, Saint Julien en Saint Alban).
Texier’s wines just landed and it’s remarkable how they’ve developed over the years. It’s been ten years, in fact, that Martin has been in operation. He started off mostly farming the vineyards and selling grapes to his father Eric Texier, and first began vinifying out of a makeshift cave in 2014. When he built his own cave in 2021, it was in concert with other big developments such as planting his own vines (the Rouviere Blanc comes from this Roussanne and Clairette) and working out a deal with a neighbor for the Cinsault and Grenache in Preyna. The beauty of the current releases is in part due to this new cellar that Eric designed (he was an engineer before he made wine) and Martin built himself with the help of the community. It is also due to the necessary interventions he has made to help with the effects of climate change, such as installing canvas shadow nets to shield certain rows of vines from the sun. He discusses the benefits of these in our interview below.
Texier is no stranger to adapting strategically. Buying grapes négoce, such as the Muscat for his “MDMA wine” aka Macertated Dry Muscat d’Alexandria (keep a look out for this in future vintages) to the Grenache/Cinsault for Boutanche, has become part of the norm. However, Martin also points out an overproduction crisis: the supply of grapes in general has actually surpassed demand for wine at this point (he studied economics and is often making such salient observations). There are probably many many reasons for this that we won’t go into today, but it’s worth mentioning anecdotally. Speaking of climate change and adaptations, the landscape itself is changing. Martin posits that, because it’s doing so poorly in recent years, Roussanne will no longer be planted in the Rhône soon. There are profound cultural implications of this, of course. But also style changes as a result. The profile of wines from the region has changed and will continue to do so.
I got a chance to catch up with Martin and talk about the festivities celebrating his tenth vintage and to ask him a bit about how the project has developed over the years. He touches on prioritizing farming: not just viticulture, but politically. Martin is a member of the farmer’s union and advocates for fair labor practices. And “making a network of farming”--keeping things local and working together.
Be well,
Selection Massale
Interview with Martin (Oct. 17th)
It’s been a while since we sent out a quarterly newsletter, so in honor of OND/Quarter 4 2025, here is a dispatch from Martin Texier (Brézème, Saint Julien en Saint Alban).
Texier’s wines just landed and it’s remarkable how they’ve developed over the years. It’s been ten years, in fact, that Martin has been in operation. He started off mostly farming the vineyards and selling grapes to his father Eric Texier, and first began vinifying out of a makeshift cave in 2014. When he built his own cave in 2021, it was in concert with other big developments such as planting his own vines (the Rouviere Blanc comes from this Roussanne and Clairette) and working out a deal with a neighbor for the Cinsault and Grenache in Preyna. The beauty of the current releases is in part due to this new cellar that Eric designed (he was an engineer before he made wine) and Martin built himself with the help of the community. It is also due to the necessary interventions he has made to help with the effects of climate change, such as installing canvas shadow nets to shield certain rows of vines from the sun. He discusses the benefits of these in our interview below.
Texier is no stranger to adapting strategically. Buying grapes négoce, such as the Muscat for his “MDMA wine” aka Macertated Dry Muscat d’Alexandria (keep a look out for this in future vintages) to the Grenache/Cinsault for Boutanche, has become part of the norm. However, Martin also points out an overproduction crisis: the supply of grapes in general has actually surpassed demand for wine at this point (he studied economics and is often making such salient observations). There are probably many many reasons for this that we won’t go into today, but it’s worth mentioning anecdotally. Speaking of climate change and adaptations, the landscape itself is changing. Martin posits that, because it’s doing so poorly in recent years, Roussanne will no longer be planted in the Rhône soon. There are profound cultural implications of this, of course. But also style changes as a result. The profile of wines from the region has changed and will continue to do so.
I got a chance to catch up with Martin and talk about the festivities celebrating his tenth vintage and to ask him a bit about how the project has developed over the years. He touches on prioritizing farming: not just viticulture, but politically. Martin is a member of the farmer’s union and advocates for fair labor practices. And “making a network of farming”--keeping things local and working together.
Be well,
Selection Massale