Clos Bateau - Thierry & Sylvie Klok-de Visser

Domain of living wines.

The film shows trees amidst the vines, sheep, golden loaves of bread—the Beaujolais countryside as Terrence Malick would undoubtedly love to film it. These two young Dutch winemakers were restaurateurs in Amsterdam, already offering their customers a fine selection of natural wines. "Through regular visits to France and the region, we fell in love with Beaujolais, with its open-minded people and the opportunity to turn our passion into a profession," explains Sylvie. A desire for a change of scenery, a new life, perfectly in tune with the times…

They chose this estate in Lantignié, where almost all the vines are located around the house. The ideal setup to recreate the ecosystem they dreamed of. "We immediately planted about a hundred trees in the middle of the vineyard to develop biodiversity. We want to work with nature, not against it," adds Sylvie.

A true plea that is reflected in the culture of the vine, with in particular the gathering of plants and herbs around the estate which then serve as the basis for "infusions" sprayed on the vines in a very homeopathic way.

In winter, sheep graze in the vineyards, clearing the soil while fertilizing it in return. On their 5.5 hectares, Sylvie and Thierry have reclaimed two hectares of old Gamay vines that had been abandoned for years. Many advised them to uproot them; they chose to try to save them, "to give them a second chance"...

In the winery, Sylvie and Thierry will experiment, depending on the vintages, but already with some clear ideas: manual harvesting, whole bunch vinification, indigenous yeasts, without additives, "to produce living wines".