COUNTRY :
France
REGION :
Burgundy
PRODUCTION :
Philippe Valette
Three generations of winemakers have worked this 8.5 ha estate in Chaintre, a small village in the south of Burgundy between the Mâcon and Beaujolais. Philippe’s father was the first farmer in the region to stop selling grapes to the co-op and create his own Domaine wine.
After finishing wine school in 1990, Philippe made the decision to convert the vineyards to organics. The next two years were full of trial and error considering his wine education never included anything about organic viticulture. With time, Philippe managed to train his chardonnay plots to maximize terroir expression without any chemical treatments. Rather, Philippe depended on the diverse mico-biological life in his vineyards to make dynamic wines. Depending on the cuvée and the vintage, Philippe will age his wines in old oak from 6 months to as long as 5 years.
Philippe is known as one of the godfathers of natural winemaking, especially in the Mâcon. He is widely respected for his knowledge of vine biology and his wines are featured on many of the great wine lists of France, Northern Europe, and now, the United States too.
“MesdemoiZelles”
Region: Burgundy
Grape: Chardonnay
Vineyard Size: 8.50 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 75 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: direct press, spontaneous fermentation in barrels with indigenous yeasts
Aging: in barrels
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: low
“Et Pourtant…”
Region: Burgundy
Grape: Chardonnay
Vineyard Size: 8.50 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 55 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: direct press, spontaneous fermentation in barrels with indigenous yeasts
Aging: 24 months in barrels
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: low
Pouilly-Fuissé “Tradition”
Region: Burgundy
Grape: Chardonnay
Vineyard Size: 8.50 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines: 55 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: direct press, spontaneous fermentation in barrels with indigenous yeasts
Aging: 24 months in barrels, sur lie
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: low
Pouilly-Fuissé “Clos Reyssié”
Region: Burgundy
Grape: Chardonnay
Vineyard Size: 8.50 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines:
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: direct press, spontaneous fermentation in barrels with indigenous yeasts
Aging: 72 months in old barrels, sur lie
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: at bottling
Pouilly-Vinzelles
Region: Burgundy
Grape: Chardonnay
Vineyard Size: 8.50 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines:
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: direct press, spontaneous fermentation in barrels with indigenous yeasts
Aging: 30 months in barrels, sur lie
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: low
Pouilly-Fuissé “Clos de Monsieur Noly”
Grape: Chardonnay
Vineyard Size: 8.50 hectares
Soil: clay, limestone
Average Age of Vines:
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: direct press, spontaneous fermentation in barrels with indigenous yeasts
Aging: 30 months in barrels, sur lie
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: at bottling
Mâcon-Villages
Region: Burgundy
Grape: Chardonnay
Vineyard Size: 2.70 hectares
Soil: limestone, clay
Average Age of Vines: 15 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: direct press, spontaneous fermentation in stainless steel with indigenous yeasts
Aging: 12 months in stainless steel, sur lie
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: low
Mâcon Chaintré
Grape: Chardonnay
Vineyard Size: 4 hectares
Soil: clay, silt
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: direct press, spontaneous fermentation in stainless steel with indigenous yeasts
Aging: 6 months in tanks, 25 months in old oak
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: low
Viré Clessé
Grape: Chardonnay
Vineyard Size: 1.48 hectares
Average Age of Vines: 62 years
Farming: organic
Harvest: by hand
Winemaking: direct press, spontaneous fermentation in old oak with indigenous yeasts
Aging: 30 months in old oak, sur lie
Fining: none
Filtration: none
Added S02: low