Posted
by Adam Morganstern
on Mar 18, 2008
in Bordeaux
In a very charming landscape, a great representation of the “Petite Suisse Girondine” is taking place: it’s the Manor of La Grolet, architecturally attractive and surrounded by sunny slopes with famous clayed and gravely soil.The 28 hectares of the domain are situated in a succession of sunny exposed hillsides and terraces, which produce high quality grapes with full maturity.To conserve their connection to the vineyard, Catherine and Jean-Luc Hubert aim to increase the biodiversity of the domain by enhancing the fertility of the soil and preserving healthy plants with natural nutrients.The Huberts oversee hand-picking with small grape boxes in order not to stress their 40-year-old vineyards (an average since some are 80-years-old!) and also to obtaina silky wine—the perfect expression of the unique “terroir” intensified by the biodynamic process.With very soft and gentle winemaking and fermentation with wild yeasts, the result is a very elegant and subtle wine with a lot of richness, earthy spiciness and a very impressive length. La Grolet is perhaps the most “terroir-characteristic wine” of the Côtes de Bourg, and its complexity of aromas, flavour and texture represent its specific place of origin.
read more
Situated between Toulouse to the East and Bordeaux to the West, Agen to the North and Pau to the South, the department of the Gers is a crossroads and a cultural melting pot.It’s an island in the center of South-West France, still virgin with its perfumes of paradise. Here, forget about motorways, train lines, heavy industry, only nature as far as the eye can see, across rolling countryside towards the wonderful mountain chain of the Pyrenees. It’s at the heart of this country of a thousand castles that little Bouscas lies, proud of its two centuries of existence. With 12 hectares of vines of which 9 are in production, with meadows and woodland bounded by two streams, the domaine is a real haven of peace which we would be delighted to share with you. Since we took over Bouscas in 2001, we have applied the practices and above all the philosophy of Bio-Dynamics, in looking after our vines and making our wine. Our yields are deliberately held low in order to improve quality: what we are seeking to do above all is to introduce a little bit of the life of our corner of paradise in each of our wines.
read more
Posted
by Adam Morganstern
on Mar 18, 2008
in Rhone
We have been wine growers from father to son since several generations. In 1999 we took over our parents’ vineyard to start up the cellar Les Aphillanthes. Domaine les Aphillanthes is located in Vaucluse. The vineyard is planted on a claylimestone soil essentially severed with rounded rocks.
read more
Posted
by Adam Morganstern
on Mar 18, 2008
in Rhone
Advocates of the principles of organic and biodynamic agriculture, the Viret family has chosen to employ a particular form of natural viticulture throughout their estate. Known as “cosmoculture”, this is based on cosmotelluric exchanges. Everything is organised in such a way that both vines and wines are able draw on their own natural defences.Work in the vineyards focuses on reorganising the magnetic field and on the application of preparations made from rocks and plants that are often found on the spot.In the winery, everything has been set up to provide continuity with methods applied in the vineyards. The winery, which was built according to ancient architectural rules (angle of the sun, golden number, cubits, etc.) from blocks of stone weighing 3 to 6 metric tons, provides the ideal location in which to make and improve wine. Vinification principles are highly simplistic, since it’s the quality of the raw materials that is of the greatest importance in making a premium wine. All oenological products and technical operations that seek to modify the wine’s intrinsic equilibrium are banished.Their philosophy draws on the principles of geobiology and flows of energy. It is designed to allow for the wine-maker’s own individual and personal interpretation and sensitivity to come into play. The aim is to produce authentic, natural, living wines that faithfully reflect the terroir from which they originate.The sensory perceptions and gustatory merit that a wine is able to offer should represent the achievements of a lengthy period of reflection and effort.
read more
Posted
by Adam Morganstern
on Mar 18, 2008
in Rhone
This is a 54-hectare (133 acre) family-run estate that has existed for 5 generations.Over the last fifteen years, we have been moving progressively towards a more environmentally-sound approach to our vines and soils. In 1996, to complete this evolution, we converted our estate to biodynamic viticulture subject to monitoring by Ecocert.2002: construction of a new vinification unit.We have built a new winery in line with our biodynamic principles (concrete vats built with dynamized water, building in harmony with its surroundings, etc.). We always pay particular attention to tending and handling our grapes and we wish to continue doing justice to and bringing out the true character of our terroirs.We make a Red Vin de Pays de Vaucluse called “Le Cadet de Montirius”, Vacqueyras “Montirius” red, white and rosé, a red Vacqueyras labelled “Clos Montirius” and a red Gigondas called “Montirius.
read more
Posted
by Adam Morganstern
on Mar 18, 2008
in Rhone
Since its creation at the beginning of the last century, the Chastan vineyard hascultivated its vines by organic agriculture and made their wines in a natural fashion.Today, following the same methods, we continue to work in harmony by listeningto nature. This creates wines of a great purity and the most beautiful expression ofour soils.The Vineyard:- 29 Hectares. Organic growing by Mention Ecocert since 1989- The youngest vines are 45 years old, up to the oldest at 90 years.- Grape variety: grénache, carignan, cinseault, mourvèdre, syrah, clairette,roussanne, et marsanne.Vinification:The wines are vinified in cement tanks for two to four weeks depending on theappellation and year. The quality of the grape which enters the cellar each year enablesus to work out wines with a minimum of intervention. The Gigondas are aged one yearin a large oak tank.
read more
Posted
by Adam Morganstern
on Mar 18, 2008
in Rhone
Domaine Pierre André is a family-owned estate of 18 hectares composed of very old vines (average age is 70 years, some parcels are over 130 years old), with extremely diverse soil types (smooth stones, clay, sand, limestone). In order to maximize the quality we practice very low yield, harvest by hand and make a very strict selection of the grapes. We generally practice long fermentation and maturation of 18-20 months in oak vats and barrels, and bottle our wine without any filtration. Our estate is organically cultivated since 1980, and we decided to adopt biodynamic practices in 1992. We renovated our cellars with only natural materials. All of the above enable us to produce wines of outstanding elegance, with very good aging potential, a beautiful expression of the “terroir” and the vintage.Our Châteauneuf du Pape red is nicely expressing the richness of Grenache (80 %) enhanced with Syrah (10 %) and Mourvèdre (8%), and touches of Cinsault, Muscardin, Counoise, Vaccarèse and Picpoul.The Châteauneuf du Pape white is a complex blend of four varietals – Clairette, Bourboulenc, Grenache Blanc and Roussane.
read more
Posted
by Adam Morganstern
on Mar 18, 2008
in Rhone
Located in the North of the appellation, Villeneuve is at the crossroad of several very ancient geological evolutions of the soils.Red clay and loess lie on sand from the sea which was here millions of years ago and which also rolled the famous round stones of Châteauneuf du Pape. Yellow clay lies on sedimentary deposits. The clays together are the “bones” of the soil and the larger of the nutritive components of the organic matter, which is the basis of the life activity of the soil. Loess, sand and stones give porosity, which is the sign of the terroir’s quality.Villeneuve was taken over in 1993 by the Wallut and the du Roy de Blicquy families.The Winery:8.40 hectares producing around 25 hectoliters per hectare i.e. less than 3,000 bottles per vintage.Grape Varieties:Grenache 72%, Mourvèdre 15%, Syrah 5%, Cinsault 4%, the rest is white Clairette, Muscardin, Vaccerese, and the “salt and pepper” in the dish….Age of Vines:- Grenache, Cinsualt Syrah, and Mourvèdre are 30 to 95 years old.- Syrah is 5 to 11 years old.Viticulture:- 100% plowing, no weed killers, no chemicals used except sulphor.- We use Camomille tea, infusion of nettle or horsetail and special preparations currently used in biodynamic culture.Vinification:The basis is a top sanitary quality of the grapes. Careful sorting of grapes in the vineyards by Marie-Christine du Roy de Blicquy prevent the rotted bunches to be in contact with the sound ones.
read more
