Domaine de FONTAVIN

Domaine Fontavin - VignArtea

RHÔNE VALLEY    45 ha     Organic Agriculture     WINEMAKER : Hélène CHOUVET


ESTATE STORY


The FONTAVIN estate is located in Courthézon. It began its activity in 1970 and was run by Martine and Michel CHOUVET, who progressively enlarged the estate by buying plots in the neighbouring communes.

In 1996, Hélène CHOUVET, their daughter, an oenologist, took over the reins of the estate, and what can be said is that this winegrower is brimming with ideas and creativity!
In 2008, she converted the vineyard into the Organic Agriculture and since 2021, some parcels have been tested and grown according the Biodynamics principles.

You will tell me: "hey, 45 ha, it is no longer a small estate", and I would answer you that indeed, the vineyard is already of considerable size.
Yet this estate works its vines with care, ensuring that there is a sufficient vegetation cover to provide freshness to the roots. Yields are limited in order to give the bunches some fresh air so that the grapes reach an optimum degree of ripeness.

The vines are spread over eight villages, which makes it possible to produce wines of different designation; Vacqueyras, Gigondas, Côtes-du-Rhône, but above all Châteauneuf-du-Pape, where most of the vines are located.
This splitting up of plots also allows the winemaker to play with the terroirs and to make us feel the impact on the wines.



TERROIR


The southern part of the Rhone Valley begins in the north at Montélimar. Laterally, the vineyard is limited by the high reliefs that surround it: to the west, the Ardèche plateau with the garrigues, to the east, the Baronnies and the Ventoux, and to the south, the Alpilles massif.

Geologically, the Rhône valley is a sedimentary basin, made up of alternating open Tertiary basins and Cretaceous reliefs cut by narrow defiles. This ensemble owes its unity to the Rhône, whose alluvial deposits and those of its tributaries cover a large area. The geological history of the region is dominated by the existence of this north-south axis, sometimes marine, sometimes lacustrine or fluvial, which explains the diversity of soils.

In terms of climate, the vineyards are not subject to maritime influences. It is marked by long anticyclonic periods and by two dry seasons, summer and winter. The annual rainfall, between 600 and 900 mm per year, is irregular and spread over a small number of days, sometimes in the form of hailstorms. They are feared by winegrowers in September, because of the risk of rotting grapes, or in October, when they disrupt the harvest.

The sunshine is exceptional with more than 2700 hours per year, and the mistral, this violent, cold and dry north wind, attracted to the depressions of the Genoa Gulf, is very present. It is beneficial after the rains, as it limits the development and spread of cryptogamic diseases, but in dry periods, it has a drying effect that is very detrimental to the proper ripening of the grapes.



WINEMAKING & WINEGROWING


The estate has been working according to the Organic Farming principles since 2008. The aim is above all to harvest grapes of impeccable quality, even if the yields must be lower.
The harvest is done by hand and the grapes are sorted directly in the vineyard.

A second sorting is done in the cellar, where are working three women, including Hélène CHOUVET. They are in charge of winemaking and blending.
Within the walls of Fontavin, the winemaking is carried out with respect for the tradition, but with as little intervention as possible: no yeasting, no addition of inputs, but on the other hand, with a strict supervision of the fermentations, accompanied by thoughtful punching downs and pumping over.

The wine is matured in concrete vats or in demi-muids, the aim being to find the aromatic expression of each plot in the finished product.
To achieve this, the rigour is required: the hygiene in the cellar and the quality of the grapes are the precious ingredients of a successful, elegant and rich wine.


Domaine Fontavin - VignArtea

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