Berlioz Chignin (Jacquere) 10 (2/6)

Gilles Berlioz Chignin 2010 Grape:100% Jacquère (11.5% alc.) This comes from 30 to 80 year old vines planted in clayey soil on a steep limestone hillside. It is a light, zesty wine, with surprising length and a chalky lift on the finish. For drinking now to 2014+. Location: Le Viviers, Chignin. Very windy location. Parcel called ‘Les Crays’ (very high altitude, next to Swiss border) Size of domaine: 3 hectares (sold 2.8 hectares to concentrate on producing quality wines and convert to agro-bio) Grape: 100% Jacquère – 30 to 80 yr old vines. Rootstock 3309 and uses massale selection. 7000-9000 vines per hectare. Terroir: Clay on limestone base. 40cm of soil overlying limestone base. Gradient between 20-50% on south-west facing slope. Viticulture: Practiced bio-dynamic viticulture since 2006 and certified Eco-cert (organic). Ploughs and hoes the soil. 4 to 5 bunches of grapes per vine, or 35 hectors per hectare. Debuds, but never vendanges en vert, and leaf thins towards the end of August, looking for maximum aeration of the grape bunch. Hand harvested in 2 tries. Vinification: Long 5 hours pressing with a pneumatic press. Uses minimal sulphur dioxide. Indigenous natural yeasts, no chaptalisation, and the wine is neither acidified or de-acidified. Cuve fermented at 18°C for one month. Gravity rather than pumping. Malolactic completed 100%. Racked once after malos. Stays on the fine lees until April then filtered (but never fined) and bottled according to the lunar cycle at the end of the month. 7000 bottles produced.