Tessa Laroche stands in the fermentation room, surrounded by stainless steel tanks, and pours us a glass of the 2015 Domaine aux Moines. Behind us, the pneumatic press makes some unusual sounds. Tessa raises her arms like a conductor, moving her hands in sync with the noise and emphasizing the press’s final sound with a slight bow. Tessa is the maestro, and the wine is her symphony.
She knows every component of her ensemble: the vines, the terroir, the weather, the press, and the age of her oak barrels. Each element is essential for crafting the perfect wine or creating a special vintage. Her notebooks, scattered across the oak barrels filled with last year’s wine, are filled with meticulous records of the harvest’s progress, wine sweetness, and alcohol percentage. Nothing is left to chance. Just as a symphony needs each instrument, Tessa’s wine relies on every detail being just right. If something is off due to a warm summer, she adjusts other variables to maintain harmony.
Later, by the lunch table, sampling the 2014 Domaine aux Moines brings to mind “Ode to Joy.” This white wine is fresh, mineral, and harmonious, with notes of oak and elderflower. Its colors capture the essence of the lazy afternoon sun during harvest time.
The Domaine aux Moines is an organic winery, meaning their organic farming practices extend beyond their estate’s fence. The other eight winegrowers of the Savennieres Roche aux Moines appellation have also converted to organic farming, ensuring the grapes are free from pesticides. No one wants contaminated vines!
Tessa gathers a group of 14 people for the grape harvest. Some are friends, a few are neighbors, and others are from abroad, making money through manual labor. The group works in pairs to pick rows of vines, ensuring no grape cluster is overlooked. I was paired with Delcho, a young Bulgarian traveling through France, picking grapes in different regions. Delcho praises the organic grapes, recalling how grapes from other regions made his skin itch due to pesticides. He contrasts that with the natural grapes of Domaine aux Moines, declaring this wine the best he’s ever had.
The Domaine aux Moines estate consists of 9.6 hectares of Chenin grapes for Savennieres Roche aux Moines, and each vine is cared for with love to ensure the highest quality yield. When you don’t have a large quantity, the focus must be on quality, which is what Tessa achieves.
Everyone I talk to agrees that Tessa, the terroir, and the soul of this organic winery are special. “It’s like family,” they say, explaining why they endure backbreaking work year after year. They work hard all day and celebrate in the evening, toasting to a good year with last year’s wine. This routine of picking, eating, drinking, and sleeping continues only for a few days until the harvest of the Chenin Blanc grapes is complete. The harvest for the red Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes is later.
The appellation of Savennieres covers 150 hectares, with the Roche aux Moines sub-appellation covering only 33 hectares. Domaine aux Moines is responsible for producing a third of this, making it a boutique vineyard where every vine is handled with care to achieve the best yield.
When the Laroche family bought the Domaine aux Moines estate about 35 years ago, it was Monique Laroche who began an extensive replanting of the vines. By 1984, 6 more hectares of Chenin Blanc were planted. Today, the estate comprises 9.6 hectares of Chenin grapes and 0.8 hectares of Cabernet grapes for Anjou Villages. Monique not only founded a new wine estate but also raised three children, one of whom, Tessa, continues the tradition. Domaine aux Moines is a place where wine is a feminine, plural word.
Tessa, a certified oenologist, worked in other French appellations before returning home 15 years ago. Domaine aux Moines is in her blood, and her soul is ingrained in the estate.
That’s the commitment you make to produce good wine.
suansuan