Domaine SAINTE BARBE

Domaine Sainte-Barbe - VignArtea

BURGUNDY    MÂCONNAIS    8 ha    CERTIFIED ORGANIC FARMING    WINEMAKER : Jean-Marie CHALAND


ESTATE HISTORY


It is a small and not very well-known estate, small in size but great by the quality of its wines. Wines are produced since 1999 by the winemaker Jean-Marie CHALAND, owner of the Sainte-Barbe estate and the Chazelles estate, with an 8 hectares vineyard spreading over the villages of Viré, Burgy and Thurissey.

The vines have been cultivated according to the principles of Organic Farming since 2003 with Ecocert certification since 2006. Most of the vines are almost one century old, an heritage that Jean-Marie CHALAND is running with care and respect.



TERROIR


Most of the cuvées are single plot wines from very distinct and varied terroirs. The soils worked by Jean-Marie CHALAND are mainly dating from the Middle Jurassic (-175 to -161 million years ago), when the sea were covering the region, sometimes low and warm, sometimes deeper and colder. These hydrodynamic variations have shaped the terroirs of Viré, and the complex faults network that crosses the village have some different geological stages surfaced here and there.

The calcareous soils rich in fossil oysters, at the origin of mineral and saline wines, adjoin those made up of a thick layer of marl, heavier, which give rise to more fruity and more intense wines.



VITICULTURE AND WINEMAKING


The estate wines have been Organic Farming certified since 2006, a viticulture mode that Jean-Marie CHALAND perfectly well masters. The harvest is manual and for the fermentations, Jean-Marie CHALAND uses native yeasts, that is to say yeasts that are naturally present in its environment (plot and cellar).

The must carry out its malolactic fermentation, and most of the wines are matured, sometimes on lees and in vats, sometimes in oak barrels, for 6 to 14 months. In some cuvées, 10% of the must is matured in new oak barrels and added to the blend, which gives the wine an elegant toasted touch.



THE WINES

Each wine produced has its own identity, sometimes relating to the vines age (cuvée Vieilles Vignes), sometimes to the plot and its terroir, or to the chosen winemaking style.

Indeed, in 2014, Jean-Marie CHALAND tried the amphorae winemaking by using an 800-liter terracotta jar made in France by Vinetterre. The juice vinified in this jar for a few months is part of the Thurissey cuvée's composition, but it only represents 35% of the blend, because Jean-Marie CHALAND does not want to influence the aromatic profile of this wine, but just to bring it his personal touch.

The wines can be classified according to their aromatic profile and their intensity : L'Epinet and La Perrière are fresh, rather mineral and saline, while Vieilles Vignes and Chazelles are more floral and fruity, closely followed by the new and latest cuvée Clos du Buc with its more intense scents, the most opulent wine staying the Thurissey cuvée, whose partial vinification in amphorae gives it intense notes of candied citrus.

Finally, let's not forget the only red wine produced under the Mâcon-Burgy designation, Terres Rouges, 100% Gamay, nicely fruity with a hint of sweet spices.


VignArtea

Showing 1 - 7 of 7 items
Showing 1 - 7 of 7 items

Menu

Top