Domaine La Bohème and Patrick Bouju

After a whole life in an industry unrelated to wine, Patrick Bouju settled in the Auvergne, where he released his first commercial vintage and then left his job as an engineer to make wine full time. While studying chemistry in central France, Patrick first started drinking wine and realized he didn’t love classic wine because he was allergic to sulfites. In 1994 and 1995, Patrick did a stint in the military where he met many sons of low-intervention winemakers who inspired him to go on to study viticulture in Beaune.  When he moved back to Auvergne, he started with just 1.5 hectares of vines, meticulously choosing old and unique sites. Patrick now farms just over 5 hectares of his own and also works with growers in southern France looking for the best known and forgotten soils of Puy-de-Dôme.