USA - Washington

"A crazy French man" named Christophe Baron settled in the Walla Walla Valley in 1997. Not that he would turn his back on his homeland, where his family has been making champagne for many generations, no, but everything was fine at home then as it is now. Cayues, named after an indigenous people whose name is derived from Cailloux, i.e. stones, is not just a name but a program, because the earth is strewn with stones the size of softballs - and reminds us of what? Exactly, of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. I am certain that Baron is the engine of the Washington wine world and is not only at the forefront with its wines under the Cayuse label, but is not resting on its laurels for a second, but is constantly developing. There is a lot of energy at play here!

Christophe Baron confidently calls this project "Hors Catégorie", which loosely translated means "in a class of its own". A class apart, you think? Then take a look at the vineyards that Christophe planted for this project. As in the steepest vineyards along the Rhône, each plant has its own vine to cling to - the hill is 60 degrees steep. Only here they stand close together, competing and fighting for every drop of water that seeps through the basalt, following each drop with their roots until they get it. Everything here is done by hand, no horse can make it through the rows. It is obvious that great, unique wines grow here. The only pity is that the vineyard is not larger (only 8000 square meters) and therefore the wine is so hard to find, even though you are so close to it at this moment.

Horsepower is not just the name, but the program for Christophe Baron. Horsepower opens a window into the past, showing us how people worked in fields and vineyards up until the middle of the 20th century, not just in Europe, but all over the world. There were no tractors back then, horses pulled the plow and the harrow. Time seemed to pass at a much more leisurely pace back then. People took their time with the work, were aware of its importance and acted accordingly. Here you won't hear a tractor, you won't smell exhaust fumes, here you will only hear the clacking of horses' hooves on the stones and the hissing of the atomizer when the biodynamic infusions are applied. However, enjoying these wines is not a journey through time, because they are all contemporary natural beauties!