The culture of the vineyard

Our technical director, Sébastien Desmoulin, takes great care to monitor the development of the vegetative cycle. Manual work is carried out throughout the year, as we have around 100,000 vines to look after.

In this constant quest for quality, prophylactic methods are favoured, aimed at putting the vines in their best possible condition. Water and photosynthesis are the basis of the vine's life. A detailed study of water variations in the soil has led to the installation of a drainage system to better control water resources.

In addition, the renewal of the trellising in the plots has increased the surface area of foliage and improved photosynthesis. The vines at La Marzelle now have an ideal leaf area coefficient of 0.75.

Sowing green manure between the rows, adapted to each plot, and occasionally adding organic fertiliser provides the plant with the nutrients it needs to develop properly and enriches the biomass. Ploughing in the autumn and dethatching in the spring protect the root system and encourage vitality.

Pruning, leaf thinning and green harvesting ensure that the grapes reach optimum ripeness, while regulating vine production.

For us, biodiversity is a verb. It's the basis of our entire philosophy and our environmental commitments.

As soon as we acquired the estate in 1998, following our philosophy that "only healthy grapes can be the basis of a great wine", we gradually converted the vineyard to the principles of organic farming.

This constant concern to preserve and restore the ecosystem was formalised in 2020 with the organic certification.

The vines here are cultivated like a garden, and biodynamically since 2015, while continuing to develop new biodiversity projects.

A number of projects have been put in place to encourage biodiversity at La Marzelle outside the vineyard.

A series of hedges, ground cover and various flowers and shrubs have been planted to attract more diversity in and around the vineyard. This not only enriches our estate in colour and beauty, but also the presence of bees, butterflies and many other valuable insects.

We have also installed around thirty nest boxes for birds and bats.

These sustained efforts at organic farming have paid off: rare treasures of nature have blossomed once again on the estate's regenerated soils, such as the field prairie-clover and the umbel holostema.

These delicate flowers are on the list of plant species protected throughout metropolitan France.

Gagea villosa is a small bulbous plant in the genus Gagea in the Liliaceae family, and is included on the list of protected plant species in metropolitan France. less than 5 known stations in Gironde with 50 to 100 plants.

Holosteum Umbellatum, another rare plant in the South-West, is found at La Marzelle. Holosteum Umbellatum, a member of the Caryophyllaceae family, is a small annual plant producing small white flowers.