Cave Yves Cuilleron

Although his training as a mechanic had not predestined him for the world of winegrowing, Yves nevertheless took over the family wine domaine in 1987. At the time it had 3.50 hectares of vines in Condrieu and Saint-Joseph (red and white). Currently undergoing conversion to organic growing, the domaine now covers 90 hectares of vineyards growing grapes for 6 Northern Rhône AOCs, IGP and Vin de France. When you use bespoke winegrowing it is important to control the vigour of the vines, to keep yields low and to obtain the ripest, healthiest grapes possible. In the winery, the aim is “to do things as traditionally as possible and not rush the wines”. Each vineyard plot is vinified separately, pressed directly and aged in 225-litre barrels for 9 months for the whites. The reds are macerated for 3 weeks in concrete vat, then aged for 18 months in barrel. We select our barrels from 5 or 6 different coopers and keep them for about 6 years. The wine from each plot is tasted regularly and blended after vinification based on the principle that similar wines should be blended together. If the wine is fruity, it is vinified accordingly. If the wine is intended for cellar-ageing, the approach will be different. That is why we offer several different wines from each appellation vinified at the winery, to suit all tastes and drinking occasions.