Skills & Experience

Fine wine comes from fine quality grapes!

Through its root system, the vine will draw mineral elements from the depths of the earth in order to pass these on to its fruit.   Therefore, our prime requirement is to maintain living soils that are able to make these minerals available to the plant:

• We do not use synthetic chemical products that would destroy part of the fauna and flora of the soil.
• Ploughing and digging improve the soil structure and force the roots to dig down deep for nourishment.
• Organic composts or mineral amendments can help us improve the microbial life of the soil and prevent certain deficiencies.

For the vine to give of its best, it must be allowed to flourish without excess or suffering! It is therefore important to help the vine to balance the vigour of its growth:

• A short winter pruning allows us to control the grape load.
• Mowing or ploughing helps us to control competition from the vegetation.

Vine diseases upset the development of the grapes and thus harm the finesse and harmony of the wines. The combat against these diseases is primarily a preventive one:

• First, we try to optimize the general condition of the vineyards so that the plant is less susceptible to diseases and parasites.
• The vineyard is protected using natural sulphur, Bordeaux Mixture, plants, etc.

Harvesting is a critical step in the process, when we have to be extremely careful not to lose any of the grapes’ potential!

• The choice of harvest date is one of the most important decisions of the year. The grapes must be healthy, physiologically ripe, and their balance compatible with the style of wine we wish to produce!
• Harvesting is carried out by hand, allowing us to sort the grapes in the vineyards.
• The grapes are carefully transported and go into the presses whole, preventing unnecessary crushing.

The aim of vinification and ageing is to pass on to the wines, all the quality potential created by the vine.

• The musts ferment in our old large oak vats (foudres), in stainless steel vats or in oak barrels for some wines. We prefer our whites not to undergo a malolactic fermentation, but this is sometimes triggered naturally when the fermentation lasts over several months.
• In order not to disturb or tire our wines, we intervene very little during the vinification process and we keep inputs to the minimum.
• The wines are aged on the lees until they are bottled over the summer following the harvest.
• The bottles are stored in our air-conditioned cellars until the wines have reached a perfect harmony.