About Chateau de Fontenille
Chateau de Fontenille, located in Fontenille, France and is owned by Stéphane Defraine. The estate comprises 67 different plots of land and a vineyard that measures 56 hectares. Out of the 56 hectares, 20 hectares are allotted for white vines and the rest for the red wines.
Chateau de Fontenille makes its wines from the fruits grown on the Fontenillean soil, which sees the coexistence of two types of soils- alluvial soils and gravely silts. The alluvial soil comprises clayey gravel built on limestone, which is particularly suitable for red wines. These are hot and poor soils that have a southern or western exposure. The soil, made up of gravely silts locally known as boulbène, is a cold soil suitable for cultivating white vines.
The terroir of Fontenille is located at the edge of the watershed between Dordogne and Garonne. This, combined with the altitude of 105 meters at which the vineyards are located, provides good air circulation and, thereby, less possibility of fungal diseases.
The philosophy of Chateau de Fontenille is that wine is an expression of nature, and a wine distinct from nature cannot be created in a cellar. Therefore, the estate has used environment-friendly measures for all departments of wine-making, from sowing to harvesting to vinification and bottling. The estate combines the traditional and the modern, keeping in mind the well-being of the business, the employees, the wines and nature.
Planting of the vines is carried out after researching the type of soil and its features. The planting is an intergenerational process, as vines give their best for about 30 to 50 years, depending on the vine cultivated.
The vines are planted in north and south directions to make most of the sunlight exposure while noting the land's topography. Since 2005, the estate has cut down on its usage of chemicals. Instead, the estate has invested in the necessary tools and training of tractor workers to maintain the health of the soil by eliminating weeds. Chateau de Fontenille has gained the HVE3 High Environmental Value certification for its efforts in environment conservation while doing business since 2017.
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