Ludivine Griveau

Hospices de Beaune · Burgundy

There are few jobs in Burgundy quite like Ludivine Griveau's.

When she became régisseur of the Domaine des Hospices de Beaune in 2015, she was the first woman to take charge of its vineyards and winemaking. It is a remarkable responsibility: around 60 hectares spread across some of Burgundy's most celebrated appellations, with wines that eventually find their way to the famous Hospices de Beaune auction each November. 

What we particularly like about her story is the balance between history and change. The Hospices is an institution with centuries behind it, yet under Griveau the domaine has continued to evolve, including its move towards organic viticulture.

We know the Hospices wines through Maison Albert Bichot, which has been closely involved with the auction for generations and handles the élevage of many of its cuvées. They are always fascinating wines to have in the cellar—not only because of what is in the bottle, but because every cuvée carries a small piece of Burgundy's history.

In the Aether cellar: Hospices de Beaune, élevage by Maison Albert Bichot.

Françoise Roumieux Mayard

Clos du Calvaire · Châteauneuf-du-Pape

Clos du Calvaire is a very different kind of story.

The Mayard family has been rooted in Châteauneuf-du-Pape for generations. Today, Françoise Roumieux Mayard runs the domaine alongside her children Nicolas and Coline. In 2021, the family also brought back the historic Clos du Calvaire name. 

We have always liked this kind of succession because it isn't really about one generation replacing another. In family domaines, things tend to happen more gradually. Knowledge gets passed down, younger members bring their own ideas, and the estate slowly changes without losing what made it interesting in the first place.

You can see some of that at Clos du Calvaire. The vineyards are now certified organic, but the domaine remains unmistakably tied to Châteauneuf and to the family that has worked there for so long.

In the Aether cellar: Clos du Calvaire, Châteauneuf-du-Pape.

Nathalie Bour

Domaine de Grangeneuve · Rhône Valley

Nathalie Bour's route into wine wasn't entirely conventional. Before returning to Domaine de Grangeneuve in 2006, she had been working in the luxury industry.

Grangeneuve was created by her parents, Henri and Odette Bour, and Nathalie returned to become part of the next chapter of the family domaine. Today her role stretches across the estate, from its commercial development and exports to welcoming visitors and representing the domaine abroad. 

Perhaps that's also why we find Grangeneuve interesting. A wine estate isn't only what happens during harvest or inside the cellar. Someone has to take those wines beyond the vineyard, introduce them to new places and new people, and build the next generation of the domaine.

Their wines have been part of the Aether portfolio for exactly that reason: they are generous, approachable Rhône wines with a very clear sense of where they come from.

In the Aether cellar: Domaine de Grangeneuve.

Véronique Lombardo

Château Le Devoy Martine · Lirac

The story of Château Le Devoy Martine actually begins a long way from Lirac.

The Lombardo family's path took them from Sicily to Tunisia and eventually to France, where Marc and Joseph Lombardo acquired the property in 1968. Marc's daughter Véronique joined the domaine in 2008 and today manages the estate. 

We have a soft spot for Lirac at Aether. It sits just across the Rhône from Châteauneuf-du-Pape and can produce wonderfully characterful southern Rhône wines, but it still tends to live somewhat in its famous neighbour's shadow.

That makes estates like Le Devoy Martine particularly enjoyable to introduce to customers. There is a sense of discovery to them—which, ultimately, is one of the things we want the Aether portfolio to be about.

In the Aether cellar: Château Le Devoy Martine, Lirac.

Elisabeth Glas

Domaine de Poulvarel · Costières de Nîmes

Domaine de Poulvarel is one of the younger estates in this story.

Elisabeth and Pascal Glas created the domaine in 2004 on family vineyards near the Pont du Gard. The land had already been cultivated by the family for generations, but creating Poulvarel turned that history into something of their own. Their daughters Céline and Axelle are now part of the story too. 

There is something we particularly enjoy about domaines like this. French wine is often presented through centuries of history, old cellars and inherited vineyards—and we love all of that—but sometimes the most interesting stories are still being written.

Poulvarel feels like one of those.

In the Aether cellar: Domaine de Poulvarel, Costières de Nîmes.

Valérie Varnier

Champagne Varnier-Fannière · Avize

Varnier-Fannière is probably the most personal story here.

The family has deep roots in Avize, in the heart of the Côte des Blancs. Denis Varnier eventually took over the domaine and built its reputation around Chardonnay and its Grand Cru vineyards. When Denis passed away unexpectedly in 2017, his wife Valérie chose to continue the estate with the existing team. 

There isn't much need to embellish that story.

Today Varnier-Fannière remains a small grower Champagne house, farming around four hectares in the Côte des Blancs. These are the kinds of Champagnes we enjoy having at Aether: wines with a very specific origin, made on a scale where the identity of the domaine still feels close to the bottle.

In the Aether cellar: Champagne Varnier-Fannière.

Looking back at the cellar

We never set out to build a portfolio around gender. We chose these wines because we liked them, believed in the estates and wanted to share them in Singapore. But looking through the cellar today, it’s nice to see how many of those stories are being shaped by women, across generations, regions and very different domaines. These are six of them, and six estates we’re very proud to represent at Aether.

Discover the wines from these estates in the Aether cellar: