The vine

• Plot /climat

  Les Chardannes, Les Combottes, Les Bas Doix

• History

  Les Chardannes comes from thistles which must have been prolific at some time ; Combottes - from "petite combe" - signifies a small valley; Doix originates from old French for a little watercourse thus keeping this plot well drained.

• Soil

  The Chardannes soil cover is clay and fairly deep; for the Bas Doix the soil cover is shallow and stony.

• Our plot(s)

  8a51ca, 2a47ca and 4a70ca planted in 1967, 1992 and 1996.

The wine

• Description

  100% Pinot Noir from handpicked grapes and raised in oak casks.

• Taste

  A crisp fruit aroma is first detected on the nose together with some fine, wild fruit notes; the fullness in the mouth, some delicate toasted flavours and good persistence reveal bring out all the elegance of this appellation.

• Serving temperature

  15/16°C. It is recommended to decante recent vintages so as to enhance the aroma.

The vintage

• The mild Winter meant that vegetation growth started early; we began debudding mid-April and with fine sunny weather the vine developed and flourished gradually in good conditions. The Summer was very dry which accelerated the maturing process with a lower yield but a high aromatic concentration for the Pinot Noir grape; for the Chardonnay however, the conditions were satisfactory for both growth and maturity. The grape harvest commenced on 20 August. The red wines are deep, bright in colour, they reflect red fruit together with full and elegant tannins.