Clos Marie L’Olivette
About This Vineyard
Christophe Peyrus took over his family’s vineyards in 1991. Prior to this, his father had sold the grapes to a local cooperative. From that point on, he sought council with some of the greatest winemakers in France (Didier Dagueneau, Clos Rougeard, Grange des Pères, etc) and now the French wine press considers his organic winery to be at the top of the appellation.
The twenty hectare (50 acres) property is situated in and around the village of Lauret, north of Montpellier and the vineyards are scattered around the terraces that rise from the village up to the sharp cliffs that form part of the plateau of the Hortus mountain. The soils are clay and chalky limestone, and all of the vineyards are continuously plowed to force the vines’ roots to seek nourishment deep down in the limestone bedrock. The domaine has been farmed using biodynamic principles since 2000, and no pesticides or herbicides have ever been used. The harvest is done manually.