Domaine d'Aupilhac - Désirée & Sylvain Fadat
The Domaine d'AUPILHAC is located in Montpeyroux, 36 km north-west of Montpellier. The cellar, which is located in the heart of the village, was created in 1989 in the family house.
Our family has cultivated vines for more than 5 generations. Some of the vines are divided into “terraces” facing south-west on the locality called “Aupilhac”. Mourvédre and Carignan are the main grape varieties, complemented by Syrah, Grenache and Cinsault.
The other terroir is found on the “Les Cocalières” site at an altitude of three hundred and fifty meters, facing north west. Syrah is dominant there, complemented by Mourvédre and Grenache. The part most oriented to the North is home to four white grape varieties of the Coteaux du Languedoc appellation which are Roussanne, Marsanne, Grenache blanc and Rolle (Vermentino).
Regular plowing brings down the roots in order to reach the freshness of the subsoil (the soil). They thus facilitate the resistance of the vine to possible summer droughts. Respecting the soil while preserving its balance is our priority.
We harvest manually. The maturity of the skin is very important for facilitated extraction of aromas and color as well as obtaining silky tannins. On the young vines, we practice green harvesting to prevent the vines from suffering from the heat and therefore promote rooting.
Indigenous yeasts (from the land) ferment the grapes naturally. The aging takes place in casks and barrels in our underground cellar. We do our own bottling at the Domaine without filtration.
We consider that the work in the vineyard has much more influence on the quality of a wine than that of the cellar.