“Michèle Aubery-Laurent knows that purity remains the ever inaccessible and unrealistic target so she is just aiming at expressing the very best, without betraying terroir and the grapes.”
Soil Specificity
The soils in the Rhone Valley are the result of a geological collision between the Massif Central and the Alps, creating the valley. This region can be split into two sub-regions, Northern and Southern Rhône. Successive layers of fluvial and calcareous marine sediments formed reliefs and geological diversities in the Southern Rhône. The valley’s soils consists nowadays of four different types of rock: granite, sandy silica, limestone and clay. Here the bedrock plays a major role by allowing different access to water and nutrients depending on the soils compositions.
History / Ethos
Domaine Gramenon is a 26 hectares estate in southern Rhône now run by the inimitable Michèle Aubery-Laurent, with the help of her son Maxime. The Domaine has reached cult status for its staunchly traditionalist yet innovative wines. Sustainability is at the heart of the operation, extending from the vineyard to the farming of vegetables and animals. Nowadays, Domaine Gramenon is widely respected for the purity of their wines, possibly the best expression of low-intervention winemaking in the region.