Grosbois les jardins de mon pere Cote-du-Tarn Blanc 2021

Being a farmer (this includes winegrowers) can be a really tough business. Since 2016, after frost wiped out 80% of their crop in the Loire. Nicolas resolved to make the family business a bit more climate-resilient (something that many winemakers all of the world are wisely doing) by having sources of high-quality grapes from other locations. This is a white blend, featuring organically grown Mauzac and Colombard, by vigneron Olivier Jean in the Cote-du-Tarn in South-West France. The Grosbois brothers visit reguarly and when ripe they harvest and naturally vinify the grapes in a borrowed cave.

This is a beatifully bodied, graceful table white that is a wonderful accompaniment to good conversation or good food... Particuarly something french-y, like a nicely roasted chicken for example.

Having roamed the world of winemaking (between them covering experience in New Zealand, Australia, Oregon, Chile, Argentina, Italy and Spain!), brothers Nicolas and Sylvain have reunited in their ancestral home domaine in Chinon, Loire Valley. They are using their experiences abroad to help shape the modern winemaking combined with the spirit and heritage of their famed terroir.

Their domaine itself sits on the right bank of the Vienne between Tours and Saumur. Around the site of the Pressoir (winepress), an ancient fortified farmstead dating back to the 15th Century.

Their parents moved to the property and set themselves to nuturing the deterioated family farm back to vigour in 1991. In 2008 they passed the baton to Nicolas and Sylvain joined in 2019.

The family is devoted to Polyculture, that means among their 20 hectares of vines across various plots they also maintain 40 hectares of rotational crops - including, sunflower, barley, wheat, maize, wild meadow, black angus cows, free-range pigs, bee hives and vegetable gardens.

The farm has been certified organic since 2012 and certified Biodynamic by Demeter since 2019.