Celine Barbaud at the Domaine des Favards, Rhone
Nested in the heart of the hillside Villages appellations of Côtes du Rhône in France is a newly designated province of Plan de Dieu. French wine producer Celine Barbaud of Domaine des Favards crafts wine from 25 hectares of certified organic vineyards located across two appellations of Southern Rhône Valley. Celine and her family have long strived to produce elegant, bright and balanced expressions of time-honored red and white varietals. We spoke to Celine Barbaud on how her family has managed to continue producing the best French wine from Southern Rhone amid a challenging and ever-changing climate.
Unique to the region is the famous Mistral, otherwise known as the spring wind that defines Southern French terroir. Celine and her father have chosen to propagate higher vineyard trellis training systems that defend the vineyard parcels against the threat of damaging winds.
Plan de Dieu is a relatively young appellation. It was previously classified simply as Côtes du Rhône Villages. In 2005, following 15 years of determination and appeal from local winemakers to the governing INAO, the region achieved designation of origin as Plan de Dieu in the Côtes du Rhône Village Communes.
Characteristically, Plan de Dieu is distinct. Measuring 500 hectares is size, wineries of Plan de Dieu can produce good volumes of remarkable quality wine that offer truly exceptional value at sometimes half the price of neighboring Cru level appellations such as Vacqueyras or Châteauneuf-du-Pape.
Characteristic to the region of Plan de Dieu is the natural vineyard terrace pebble beds that create consistent day and night temperatures. Heat absorbed by the white pebbles during the day dispense their heat during the cool of the night lending warmth to the vineyard.
For the first time this year Celine has been able to drip irrigate the parcels of white Marsanne, Roussane and Viognier as well as some Syrah, Mourvedre, Grenache and Marselan (a cross between Cabernet Sauvignon and Grenache). Celine explains challenges that dry conditions and minimal irrigation can have on grapes such as Syrah.
“In recent years the region has seen smaller than usual rainfall presenting challenges for our region’s hallmark Syrah varietal. Syrah typically relies on a lot of water to deliver optimal quality, freshness and balance. Fortunately, grapes like Grenache and Carignan don’t fear hydric stress but others such Syrah will struggle through the season with no irrigation. For the future of our family wines, we have begun to tap our own water, drilling deep into our soil to create a well that has helped us to irrigate a good portion of our vineyards”, says Celine
The Barbaud family feel a sense of relief and happiness but know they are only half way!
“Currently we are in the middle of harvest. We know that this year the Syrah has suffered due to dry conditions and we are excited to see how these vines mature and evolve following irrigation. We know that this sustainable approach to farming will yield wines of sophisticated quality with peak clarity, freshness and brilliance”, exudes Celine.
Like all good winemakers Celine tastes for ripeness of acidity as well as the ripeness of skin texture, seeds, color and flesh.
“It is important to, as we always do, taste the grapes right throughout veraison. Harvesting grapes based on the sugar content simply doesn’t suffice. Sugar ripeness is essential but equally as important, the seeds need to be mature, skin color needs to be developed, and the flesh needs to be perfectly ripe. Otherwise we are almost certainly picking below maturity. Underripe seeds are not pleasant. They are green tasting and astringent. It converts to a raw hazelnut nuance in the wine. s not a fault but a sign of immaturity. Ripeness of pulp ensures a maximum volume of juice. Harvesting a bucket of underripe grapes will never yield the quantity of perfectly ripened pulp. We harvested today and from the looks of the quality coming in so far, we’ve made the right choices. It tastes just right! My family laughs that we torture our minds to choose the right date. But it all goes into making the best wine of the region” Celine explains.
10 years after taking over Domaine des Favards from her father, Celine is quietly working on secret projects that we can’t wait to share. Until then we are offering you the opportunity to secure an allocation from this exciting French grower and producer Domaine des Favards. Explore our range of great value wine in our La Cave wine store.