Thésée, Touraine (Loire)
I happened to learn from Bruno Allion that Damien Menut whom I visited last year was also doing a picking on a small parcel. This was indeed a truly small parcel
outside Thésée on the top of the hill along the road to Couddes, only 10 ares in total, a few rows, and Damien was doing it with his mother and a friend. Given the yields are also quite low, he'll make a barrel of this parcel, not more. These Sauvignon vines were planted in 1982, Damien noticed there's been a surge in the casualty rate with Esca (Black Measles) this year, Esca being a disease with symptoms like the leaves turn red/orange and the vine dies very quickly afterthen.
Damien bought a big old machine since the last time I saw him : a vintage Loiseau straddle tractor from 1968 with a MWM engine. The old tractor runs fine, he bought it to a vigneron in Montrichard, further downstream along the Cher river. Damien is still very relax and easygoing, taking gratefully what the vineyards give him back, even when with small yields. He vinifies now a total vineyard surface of 1,6 hectare and if he may add more parcels he's careful about keeping the surface small enough so that he can manage the farming himself.
The basket press looks so interesting. How did the wine turn out?
Posted by: Brunner | September 28, 2017 at 12:46 PM
Félicitations!
Posted by: Le Her | October 07, 2017 at 03:01 PM