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Location: France, Loire, Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgeuil
Winemaker: Gérald Vallé
Grapes: Cabernet Franc
Soil: gravel, thick layers of clay/siliceous gravel with deep iron
Winemaking: The vinifications are carried out in the traditional way in wooden vats after destemming. Punching down twice a day for about ten days. The macerations are long (about a month). Alcoholic fermentation begins naturally one day after vatting. The wines age in barrel for one year. Afterwards, they will be racked and then bottled without filtration or fining.
From the producer: …I fell into winemaking when I was little, as they say. My father Claude Vallée started working at the family estate at the age of 14. In 1957 (when my father started out), the estate had 12 ha of vines as well as crops of asparagus and fruit trees; now we represent 27 hectares of vines. Since my takeover in 1997, I am the first generation dedicated solely to wine.
Aware of having inherited an estate whose cabernet franc vines are planted on the best terroirs of Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil, I decided in 1999 to set up a philosophy of organic cultivation with respect for the plant, the soils and the environment. It seemed to me to be a job requirement. To make quality wines, it is not enough to have technical knowledge, you must also have sensitivity, know how to listen to the plant, let it take back its natural rights and benefit from a balanced ecosystem with real microbial life in the grounds. Wine is a living material that is made above all around the vine stock throughout the year. This is why my team and I have set up a rigorous work schedule of ploughing, stripping, hoeing and treatment with sulfur or copper from the spring to avoid the use of chemical weedkillers. , fertilizers and other pesticides. Carrying out such work can only be envisaged with a close-knit team aware of the merits of such an approach.
Location: France, Loire, Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgeuil
Winemaker: Gérald Vallé
Grapes: Cabernet Franc
Soil: gravel, thick layers of clay/siliceous gravel with deep iron
Winemaking: The vinifications are carried out in the traditional way in wooden vats after destemming. Punching down twice a day for about ten days. The macerations are long (about a month). Alcoholic fermentation begins naturally one day after vatting. The wines age in barrel for one year. Afterwards, they will be racked and then bottled without filtration or fining.
From the producer: …I fell into winemaking when I was little, as they say. My father Claude Vallée started working at the family estate at the age of 14. In 1957 (when my father started out), the estate had 12 ha of vines as well as crops of asparagus and fruit trees; now we represent 27 hectares of vines. Since my takeover in 1997, I am the first generation dedicated solely to wine.
Aware of having inherited an estate whose cabernet franc vines are planted on the best terroirs of Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil, I decided in 1999 to set up a philosophy of organic cultivation with respect for the plant, the soils and the environment. It seemed to me to be a job requirement. To make quality wines, it is not enough to have technical knowledge, you must also have sensitivity, know how to listen to the plant, let it take back its natural rights and benefit from a balanced ecosystem with real microbial life in the grounds. Wine is a living material that is made above all around the vine stock throughout the year. This is why my team and I have set up a rigorous work schedule of ploughing, stripping, hoeing and treatment with sulfur or copper from the spring to avoid the use of chemical weedkillers. , fertilizers and other pesticides. Carrying out such work can only be envisaged with a close-knit team aware of the merits of such an approach.