The White Lands - Celine & Benoit Blet

In May 2004 we took over the vineyard of Bernard Coutel, a young retiree in Oiron, who wanted to pass on his wine estate to young people.

We were looking for a human-scale vineyard where we could let the terroir express itself. And that's how we came to settle in Oiron, in Deux-Sèvres (Poitou-Charentes). We compost 80 to 100 tons of cow manure, which we incorporate into the producing plots every three years or for new plantings; we use no chemical fertilizers. We are committed to preserving our wine heritage by planting vines propagated through massal selection (the plants are propagated from old vines, not clones of grape varieties). We use the Guyot Val de Loire pruning method to achieve the right balance for the vine, the harvest, and the quality. The foliage is trained high to maximize sun exposure. The soils are worked by plowing, hilling, de-hilling, and hoeing, without the use of chemical herbicides. Using Bordeaux mixture, sulfur, and biodynamic preparations, we ensure the health and natural quality of our grapes. Harvesting is done by hand, with successive sorting of the Chenin Blanc grapes by teams made up of our customers. Gentle pressing is performed using a pneumatic press. Vinification is carried out without added SO2 when the vintage allows, or with a light dose to avoid spoiling the grapes. Indigenous yeasts from our terroirs are used. The white wines (Chenin Blanc) are transferred by gravity into barrels for fermentation and aging on fine lees. The red wines (Cabernet Franc or the rarer Gamay de Bouze) are made using traditional maceration with one year of aging either in underground concrete tanks or in barrels. Clarification is achieved by racking, without fining or filtration. These time-honored methods are used to bottle the wines before the end of alcoholic fermentation.