Le Poisson à Plumes

The Feathered Fish - Guillaume Robert

Le Poisson à Plumes is a 1-hectare vineyard of Viognier and a 25-hectoliter cellar located in St Laurent sous Coiron, in the southern Ardèche region. I buy organic grapes from a winegrower I know well, as I also work for him. Beautiful vines and good grapes.

My first vintage is 2024.

My plot of land, which I rent from the town hall, is terraced and therefore difficult to work with mechanically. So I do everything by hand, except for a pass with the shredder after pruning.

It was planted in 1999 in shallow, well-drained, calcareous and marly soils at an altitude of approximately 350 m, in the commune of Villeneuve-de-Berg.

It's a vineyard that produces little but good quality grapes, well-sunny and ventilated by the Mistral wind. There are also about a dozen olive trees on the plot.

I got it back last February after two years of neglect, so it didn't produce anything this year. Since I did manage to fix it up quite a bit, I'm pinning my hopes on 2026...

It should be certified organic (AB) in 2026.

In April I start the green work by hand (shoot removal, bud removal), until May when I start the lifting in parallel, as the vegetative growth progresses.

I apply treatments using sulfur and/or copper sprayers depending on disease pressure. No synthetic molecules are used in the treatments, and I try to limit the dosages as much as possible (1.2 kg of copper metal/ha in 2024).

I start pruning (cordons) when it has been cold enough (December/January) and while waiting for this cold weather I repair the trellising, cut back dead arms and put sheep manure in the vines… After pruning I do weeding with a pickaxe and a brush cutter.

In the cellar, fermentation takes place with indigenous yeasts.

It's quite simple: I add nothing to my wines and I don't fin or filter them.

Winemaking methods vary depending on the vintage, the grape variety, and the desired outcome.

Production between 1500-2000 bottles/year

Biodynamics intrigues me and I will integrate it into my practices as I learn more about it.