Lolita Sene
Saint-Victor-la-Coste, Rhône, France

Lolita Sene’s path to becoming one of the southern Rhône’s most exciting young micro-vigneronnes has been anything but conventional. A native of Nîmes, she first made her name in Paris as the artistic director of a notorious nightclub — a nocturnal sprint of glamour, disillusionment, and white lines that she later immortalised in her 2015 debut novel - 'C: La Face Noire de la Blanche', a raw, self-effacing and unflinching chronicle of nightlife excess.

Her literary voice continued through a trio of personal, genre-blurring novels: 'Seules les Vignes', a meditation on nature, solitude, and viticulture; 'Un été chez Jida', a sun-drenched story of intergenerational memory; and 'QUEER', a bold, tender exploration of identity and desire. Together, her books trace an evolution from urban chaos to rural stillness — a shift that mirrors her own life & vinous endeavours.

Lolita traveled the U.S. as a reporter for the French travel guide Le Petit Futé, before moving to Canada, where she worked as a sommelier in Vancouver & Toronto. There, she became known as a fierce advocate for natural wine — a passion that soon began to eclipse her literary ambitions. But it wasn’t until she returned to France that her story as a vigneronne truly began…

Settling in Montpellier, Lolita enrolled in agronomy & business school — crunching spreadsheets by day & pulling corks at Tringue Fougasse, a mostly conventional wine bar, by night. It was here, tasting the occasional bottle of natural wine, that her sense of taste — and purpose — cracked wide open.

By 2018, Lolita had moved back to her native Gard & released her first 1,500 bottles of négociant wine born from a shared cellar in Gajan near Uzès. That same year, she acquired her first vines: a neglected plot of old-vine Grenache in Saint-Victor-la-Coste located in the Gard region of the southern Rhône Valley, which she managed to secure after the estate’s owners recognised her from her books. The vines had been chemically farmed, machine-pruned, and left in rough shape; mildew wiped out her first harvest. But with only hand clippers & stubborn resolve, Lolita began the long, physical process of bringing the old gnarly vines back to life; harnessing depth & ensuring balance.

Saint-Victor-la-Coste, on the western fringe of the southern Rhône (North-West of Tavel by 20 minutes), is defined by its rugged garrigue, sandy clay-limestone soils, and scattered galets roulés (yellow rolled pebbles) — sun-warmed stones that retain & reflect heat. The dry Mediterranean climate, marked by hot days & tempered by the mistral wind, brings ripeness & freshness in equal measure. It’s a place of extremes & resilience, reflected in the tension, balance & aromatic lift of Lolita’s wines.

Lolita gradually pieced together tiny parcels — 0.30ha of Cinsault, 0.35ha of Syrah — and in 2021, planted an additional 0.20ha of Cinsault alongside her husband, Nicolas Renaud of 'Les Clos des Grillons'. That same year, the couple built a modest cellar beside their home in Rochefort du Gard: simple, functional & entirely hands-on.

Today, Lolita farms 2 hectares organically. She works without pumps or additives, filling barrels & tanks by bucket, pressing with a small manual press. Her wines are made without additions & remain unfiltered. 

Her wines reflect her literacy; idiosyncratic, raw & emotive. They carry the signature of someone unafraid to reveal character & texture. Whether on the page or in the glass, Lolita Sene continues to tell stories — and though her winemaking career is still unfolding, her work is already deeply sought-after, and well worth the wait!