Both the density of planting (8 000 to 10 000 vines per hectare) and severe pruning in the goblet style throughout the winter help to regulate the yield. De-budding in April and flowering in June (95 to 100 days before the next harvest) are also important stages which are subject to weather conditions. The beginning of the color change at the beginning of August is the start of the most important stage in ripening.

The harvest, that takes place around 15 th September, is exclusively manual on our estate. The harvesters are a team of young men and women who are logded at the Château.

The bunches of grapes are cut with a sickleshaped harvesting knife and are then transported to the cellar in small bins. After that they are tipped carefully into the vats in order to avoid crushing, so that the bunches remain whole.

The juice sinks to the bottom of the vat where it starts to ferment. This is a reaction from the yeasts naturally present on the grape skins which transform the fruit sugar to alcohol and carbonic gas.

The latter soon saturates the vat and allows intracellular fermentation of the whole berries, which is the forerunner of fruity aromas.

On around the 3 rd or 4 th day and because of the maceration some of berries release their juice. Then comes osmotic transfer from this juice to the bunches which have remained whole and which become concentrated in aromas, color and alcohol. This allows us to obtain a very colorated, strongly perfumed and very fruity juice that is still sweet but already alcoholic called “paradis”. (thanks to the typically Beaujolais fermentation process).

The pressing takes place on the 5 th day for wines that are to be “Nouveau “ and on the 12 th day those to become “Côte de Brouilly”. To the press juice we add some or all of th run off juice (that which had been pressed by gravity during maceration) to get our future vat. The vat is then cooled to 18°C before being transferred to an oak tun to finish its alcoholic fermentation and to do its malo-lactic fermentation.

The wine is matured over the winter, during this time it is racked from time to time to allow it to clarify and become suppler. Bottling takes place during the spring following the harvest, generally after Easter, this means that vintage retains its personality, fruitiness and elegance.