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In 2004, at the age of 28, Natacha Chave started her own domain. This fledging vigneronne bought 1.3 hectares of vines among the hilly fertile soils of Saint-Joseph in Northern Rhône. Just three years later, in 2007, she grew her domain, purchasing another 6.5 hectares of old vines in the Crozes-Hermitage appellation, where she added some new plantings as well.

Winemaking is in her blood. Her parents realised their dream of making wine in the 1970s, when they established a small winery in Crozes-Hermitage. Her older brother, the eminent Yann Chave, later took over their parents’ estate. Rather than join the family business, Natacha desired independence and to make wine free of limitations. She had her eye set on the region in which she grew up, the Northern Rhône, where she believes the perfect expression of her favourite grape Syrah can be found.

Because of the steep hills of her vineyard, none of the farming can be mechanised, and so Natacha farms meticulously by hand, while following biodynamic practices. The soil is a mix of clay and alluvial stones, and her wines are fermented on wild yeasts, with low oak handling and using all old wood. She uses sulphur as minimally as possible, and the wines are bottled without fining or filtration.

Natacha uses only natural additives in the vineyard. In 2006, she began using a treatment made from fenugreek seeds, which helps the vines develop a resistance to phylloxera, and she has also experimented with a treatment made from yucca, chitin, and tea tree oil.

In speaking about where the name of her domain, Aléofane, stems from, Natacha says: “It's an island imagined by John MacMillan Brown in his book, Riallaro: the Archipelago of Exiles. I took this literary reference to name the wine I wanted to make. The description corresponded to the controversy about wine in our society. It's a product shared with conviviality, but obeys strict rules. In the city of Aléofane, fermented drinks are considered as diabolic and rare goods but possessing healing properties.”