Château de Pierreux

A changing vineyard

Since 2009, the hundred or so hectares which make up the Château de Pierreux vineyards producing the Brouilly appellation have been undergoing a transformation. The chateau’s Gamay vines, traditionally pruned into a so-called goblet shape, are being gradually switched over to trellising. This is being done to improve the quality of the fruit and the efficiency of working in the vines, all with a genuine ecological benefit.

A vast program to reorganize the plots, including pulling up and replanting, has today brought the area under trellis to 24 hectares surrounding the chateau.

With a space of two meters between rows to allow a small tractor to pass, the vines are trained in a single cordon, 40cm from the ground to avoid the damp, and to a minimum height of 1.6m along two fixed wires, with 80cm between each plant. This brings the density down from 10,000 vines per hectare to 6,500.

This method of pruning provides a greater surface of foliage, leading to less productive vines with smaller, more concentrated grapes. Around 10 clones have been used on the different soils, selected for small yields to encourage the expression of aromas and concentration. The geology here is mainly pink granites, with a tendency to sand for the higher plots and clay on the lower ones.

Work on the vines can be done more easily by machine, such as ripping between the plants and plowing four times a year, pre-pruning, and shredding off-cuts. That said, nothing can replace manual pruning.

An additional advantage, and not the least, is the lower ecological impact of working the soil, which has now replaced chemical weedkillers.

With relatively low yields of 35 to 45 hl/ha, the results seen over the first six years have been extremely encouraging from this new generation of plants, resulting in some lovely wines.

In another development with an eye on the future, a four-hectare plot has been cultivated organically and from 2018 will shift to biodynamics, using preparations made from medicinal plants grown at the chateau, opening up new prospects for excellence.


In brief :

- Total area : 103 hectares

- Appellation Brouilly
Area : 96 hectares

- Appellation Beaujolais-Villages white (Chardonnay)
Area : 6.4 hectares