LA VINIFICATION
LA VINIFICATION EN ROUGE
The harvest is destemed and crushed before being sent by a pig-tailed marc pump, which pushes the harvest without altering it to the open stainless steel tanks. Each grape variety is vinified separately. The fermentation is set off with natural yeast present on the skin of the grapes. We regulate the fermentation temperature between 25 and 31°C with cooling plates where cold water circulates.
During vatting, pumping is carried out to:
- oxygenate the fermentation must
- Wet the marc cap to facilitate pigeage for gentle extraction.
When the alcoholic fermentation is finished, the vatting and pigeages continue until the fall of the cap of marc. Daily tastings will determine the date of the release. The wine is then sent in barrels or casks to complete its malolactic fermentation and aging.
LA VINIFICATION EN BLANC
The grapes are harvested with morning freshness to avoid oxidation of the must, preserve the aromas and limit the need for energy to cool the harvest. As soon as it arrives in the cellar, the harvest is sent to the press where the must is extracted. It is then cooled in tanks to prevent fermentation and allow a slight settling. We fill the barrels by gravity in which the alcoholic and malolactic fermentations will take place between 18 and 25 °C. For our 2 whites, the vinifications are similar. Carignan blanc Ugni-blanc and Grenache Blanc and Clairette on the one hand and Rousanne, Marsanne, Vermentino and Grenache Blanc on the other hand are assembled as soon as they are settled.
L'ELEVAGE ET LA MISE EN BOUTEILLE
L'ELEVAGE
Until the month of July following the harvest, each grape variety is aged separately. We often taste the wines to follow their evolution. Regular assembly tests are carried out.The oak casks and barrels are topped monthly (filled to compensate for the loss by evaporation). At the beginning of the summer all the barrels and foudres are emptied, the wine is returned in vats and the assemblies are made. Once this work is done the wine is put back in barrels and in foudres where it will finish its aging. One month before bottling, it is again relocated in tanks where the final assembly is carried out.
LA MISE EN BOUTEILLE
We bottle all our wines by gravity, without going through a filter. The selected periods are according to the lunar cycle that is to say in decreasing moon, rising and fruit period.