Philosophy

More than a passion, a lifestyle!

Viticulture: four ways to grow grapes

Starting from the 1970s, conventional viticulture became the most prominent growing method in our vineyards. Vines and soils are chemically treated in order to have important and constant yeilds. The roots no longer need to dig deep for their nutrients and remain on the upper layer of the soil.

Less damageable to the environment than the conventional approach, this method ressembles the organic farming one. Synthetic and chemical agents are only used if case of necessity. There are no controls or formal specifications, the winegrowers is responsible for and decides what should or should not be used.

Pesticides, fungicides, fertilizers are excluded from the vine, which is treated with natural products. Many inputs (wood shavings, sulfur, industrial yeasts) are however tolerated during vinification.

The biodynamic approach extends and applies the organic logic as far as possible by seeking to produce harmony between the earth and the plants. The soil is nurished with natural fertilizers according to the lunar cycle. During the wine creation process, inputs are reduced to a minimum. Most wine producers working with the Passeurs have adopted this method, or are about to.

Wine making: quick facts

« Ils vous disent de mettre du soufre. On en mettrait ben autant comme autant. Il en faudrait pus que le bon Dieu pourrait en bénir. Et pis des ingrédients, des saletés, de la chimie, des poisons. »

C. Péguy

The arsenal of chemical products recommended and often used in the "conventional" winemaking process is literally astonishing, confining the wine to predefined and marketable tastes. After so many treatments, the wine is left broken and subdued. At the Passeur, we prefer working with winemakers who work in conscience and with care, limiting the treatments and alteration of their grapes and wine.

We can therefore do without industrial yeasts, for example, which autocratically regulate the wine-making process and give the wines artificial aromas such as that unbearable scent of chemical bananas which can be found in cheap Beaujolais. In soils where flora and fauna have not completely disappeared, indigenous yeasts are sufficient and offer complex, rich and varied aromatic spectrums.

And then there is the sulfur. Yes, it is present in all wines and it forms naturally during the alcoholic fermentation. However, the use of SO2 as practiced by conventional wine must be forgotten for multiple reasons, first among which, for the health of the consumer: sulfur is in no way harmless to the human body. Secondly, for the taste of the wine, which sulfur denatures. Wines with little or no added sulfur require flawless winemaking conditions, a lot of work in the cellar, perfect hygiene and optimal storage and conservation conditions. But the results speak for themselves.

Yeasts and SO2 should not be the vine hiding the grapes of the other additives and auxiliaries authorized by certain approvals, but totally excluded by the Passeur: fermentation regulator, enzymes (GMO or not), sugar enrichment, dealcoholization, acidification, deacidification, filtrations, correctors of colors and aromas ... More than 300 different additives are used in "conventional" winemaking!

The four wine families

Yes, we know, reducing wines to categories is silly, especially when we fight for the wine to be its true self. Categories are nevertheless helpful to guide wine afficionados in their choices, so here there are:

These wines are distinguished by their so-called “varietal” aromas, simple, expressive and familiar, easily recognizable. These aromatic profiles are defined as floral, vegetal, fruity, mineral or spicy. These are wines of everyday and immediate consumption.

In this category, fermentation, vine growing and aging take precedence over the terroir. These are often blended wines, to be kept in the cellar, whose original aromas fade in favor of more complex bouquets, which often hint at "millésime" wines.

The profile of these wines is the result of a multitude of factors. The type of soil (silica, clay, limestone) on which the vine grew, the climate in which it was bathed and the topology (height, slope, hydration) of the plot. Without of course forgetting the know-how, the mood and the choices of the winemaker. This category is as large as it is colorful.

Far from commercial standards and stereotypes, these wines follow a pure and strict viticultural approach, respectful of the environment. No synthetic products are used in the vineyard, the soils of which are worked incessantly, nor are corrector or additives used in the cellar. Bye-bye chemical yeasting, filtration, untimely sulphiting, chaptalisation, acidification or deacidification. Without any chemical shackles, these wines show a seminal note far removed from the lobotomized juices found in regular winesellers.

Lunar calendar

On Mondays, wine lovingly caresses your taste buds and its amora full of truly bewitching floral and fruity spray your nose.

On Tuesdays, the previously magical bottle can give you the cold shoulder and leave your taste buds disappointed.

Who's fault is that? The moons! These wines are not full of chemical, but filled with life. They evolve as the stars and planets move around, a notion which can offend down-to-earth minds. It is, however, a reality, which our wine producers would have a lot to say about.

Don't panic, there is nothing catastrophic about this. You just need to pay attention to the lunar calendar before you grab the corkscrew. It is quite easy to read since there are only four types of days: leaves, fruits, roots and flowers.

Afficher le calendrier complet

Aujourd'hui

Monday 04 July 2022

Jour fruit

Premier croissant

Calendrier complet

On fruit and flower days, wine likes to have fun, and so do we.
On root days, he might be in a bad mood. Nothing serious. What happened to the carafe?
On leaves day, he'll be outright distasteful. Shall we drink tea?

Friday 01 July Jour feuille Premier croissant

Saturday 02 July Jour fruit Premier croissant

Sunday 03 July Jour fruit Premier croissant

Monday 04 July Jour fruit Premier croissant

Tuesday 05 July Jour racine Premier quartier

Wednesday 06 July Jour racine Premier quartier

Thursday 07 July Jour racine Premier quartier

Friday 08 July Jour racine Lune gibbeuse croissante

Saturday 09 July Jour fleur Lune gibbeuse croissante

Sunday 10 July Jour fleur Lune gibbeuse croissante

Monday 11 July Jour feuille Lune gibbeuse croissante

Tuesday 12 July Jour fruit Pleine lune

Wednesday 13 July Jour fruit Pleine lune

Thursday 14 July Jour fruit Pleine lune

Friday 15 July Jour fleur Pleine lune

Saturday 16 July Jour fleur Lune gibbeuse décroissante

Sunday 17 July Jour fleur Lune gibbeuse décroissante

Monday 18 July Jour feuille Lune gibbeuse décroissante

Tuesday 19 July Jour feuille Dernier quartier

Wednesday 20 July Jour feuille Dernier quartier

Thursday 21 July Jour fruit Dernier quartier

Friday 22 July Jour fruit Dernier quartier

Saturday 23 July Jour racine Dernier croissant

Sunday 24 July Jour racine Dernier croissant

Monday 25 July Jour racine Dernier croissant

Tuesday 26 July Jour fleur Dernier croissant

Wednesday 27 July Jour fleur Nouvelle lune

Thursday 28 July Jour feuille Nouvelle lune

Friday 29 July Jour feuille Nouvelle lune

Saturday 30 July Jour fruit Premier croissant

Sunday 31 July Jour fruit Premier croissant

What a team!

Le Passeur de Vin is also a bunch of amazing and competent people, with complementary jobs but with shared passion and values: respect, honesty, enthousiasm, listening and generosity.