Growing Conditions

A very dry spring with high temperatures in early April caused early bud burst. When the frost happened, on the 27thof April, the shoots was already30 cmlong… This hazard has reached certain plots located on a corridor east of the vineyard. The result: 30% of destroyed harvest.

A beautiful month of May: The half-flowering is around May 25th. Or almost two weeks ahead of the previous year.June records heat records. At the end of June, 5 days of intense rain (130mm) follow. A temperate climate over the two following months of summer gives to the fruits a nice freshness.

- Sustainable viticulture: Terra Vitis
- Soil type: Gravelly Pyrenean soil covering a limestone subsoil.
- Area: 32 hectares

The vines are cultivated according to environmentally friendly growing
practices, respecting both the plant and its environment. Vine care constantly
ensures that a balance is maintained between the plant and its environment in view
of achieving well-aired foliage and a regular load of grapes, which gradually ripen in
the sunshine. Depending on their nature, the parcels are ploughed or grassed over
between the rows.

Harvest

The first half of September was sunny with some rains, allowing us to reach a beautiful maturity, and to harvest in good conditions during the second fortnight.

Winemaking

After cold maceration of the harvest, the alcoholic fermentations were made by focusing on the extraction of the fruit. The wines are colorful and crispy, they have a nice structure with melted tannins that augur a very nice evolution in barrels. Good acidity is a perfect match for fruit, structure and wood. This is a vintage that will cross the time perfectly!

A strict selection of the parcels and the grapes takes place
during the harvest. After a gentle crushing and destemming of the grapes, the must
is put into small-thermoregulated vats ensuring that the fermentations are perfectly
controlled, bringing out the expression, the richness and the nuances of each plot.
The vatting period lasts 20 to 25 days depending on the vintage.

Aging

Maturing lasts around 12 months in merrian oak barrels, a 1/3 of which are
replaced each year. We then undertake the final blending before bottling at the
chateau.

- 30% new oak barrels