Shaunt Oungoulian and Diego Roig have come a long way since shoveling grapes through a basement window in Orinda. Walking into the Les Lunes facility in Richmond makes that clear. High ceilings and climate-controlled storage rooms house brand-new equipment and an office space for the occasional staff tasting. They’ve worked for every inch of it, but it’s just the tip of the iceberg. Both their wines and their story are intriguingly unique.
Roig was brewing beer in his garage before he ever considered wine. His plan changed after a friend introduced him to natural wine. Instead of going to law school, he made a 180-degree turn and decided to work a harvest. Years later, he had multiple international harvests under his belt—including stints in France and New Zealand—as well as a viticulture and enology degree from UC Davis.
He and Oungoulian met while working for the same producer in Burgundy, where both were equally driven in their pursuit of making great, honest wine. The rest is history. Their goal: to introduce a product like the ones that inspired them to start making wine in the first place.
It’s an interesting balance of control that Les Lunes navigates. On one hand, the product is strictly low-intervention. Vineyards must be certified organic, meaning implementing the use of cover crops and no synthetic fertilizers or pesticides. For vineyards they want to source from that aren’t yet organic, they take the time to transition them, often enduring a couple of years without financial return as the vines recover from previous treatments. It’s so naturally conscious that the Les Lunes staff eats the peas and radishes grown between the rows of vines. It seems fitting, given how carefully they tend the soil.
On the other hand, Oungoulian and Roig understand the variables they can control—mother nature notwithstanding. Both have experience in vineyard management and farm their own vines. It’s a rare skill that speaks to Les Lunes’ intentionality: 50 acres across 10 properties, all chosen for varietal-specific soil structure, diurnal shift (the difference in temperature between the heat of the day and the cold of the night) and other key enological factors.
Because of this careful vineyard selection, there are almost no adjustments or stabilization steps in the vinification process at Les Lunes.
I’d be surprised if there’s even one new oak barrel in the entire facility. Les Lunes wines rely on—and thrive on—their natural acidity. “When it comes to aging, I think that natural acidity is a forgotten yet much-needed component. Tannins just don’t buy you as much as good, crisp acid,” Roig explains.
Les Lunes is technically three labels in one. “Les Lunes” is the flagship, focusing on single-vineyard wines that highlight the character of their self-farmed sites. Offerings include a Petaluma Gap Pinot Noir and a Venturi Old Vine Zinfandel—both structured yet malleable enough to chill on a hot summer day.
Their second label, “Populis,” aims to make by-the-glass wine both affordable and high quality. While they don’t grow this fruit themselves, Roig and Oungoulian buy only from deeply trusted growers, where long-standing relationships come first. Wines include a nuanced sauvignon blanc and the popular “Astral Blend,” a zany fusion of zinfandel, syrah, pinot noir and chardonnay. “We love the people we buy from, have for a long time,” Roig says.
And their third label rarely exists in commercial winemaking: It’s fully experimental. When Les Lunes encounters an unfamiliar grape or something goes unplanned in the cellar, it becomes the newest addition to the Licorne Méchante label. A carbonic red blend? Absolutely. Repurposed pressed lees from every barrel and tank in a single season? Why not?
“We make the wines we want to drink,” says Roig. It’s a simple philosophy that results in genuinely expressive wines.
I asked Roig a question I pose to many winemakers: Why do you make wine? “I love taking something and turning it into something else,” he notes. It’s a mindset that has served Les Lunes well.
They’ve achieved their original goal of introducing inspiring wines to the public. East Bay drinkers can only hope they’re already chasing the next one.
Les Lunes Wines, 425 S. 3rd St., Richmond, 510.813.3730; lesluneswine.com.
