Domaine Verena Wyss

The wine estate is located in the Gabian municipality, in the Hérault département, Languedoc-Roussillon region, France. The estate, which was a bit battered at the time, was discovered by Verena Wyss and her husband in 1989 and revitalized by building a new cellar and renovating a barrel cellar. The vineyards cover more than 13 hectares of vines, with a view as far as the Mediterranean Sea, some 30 kilometres away. They are planted with the red wine varieties Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Lledoner Pelud (Garnacha Peluda), as well as the white wine varieties Viognier and Roussanne. All vines are trained with short pruning according to the Guyot method. The gently sloping hillsides favour the homogeneous and complete maturation of the vines planted southwards. A nearby forest creates an excellent microclimate, a variety of hedges and shrubs favors a healthy thriving.

From the very beginning, the vineyards have been cultivated in accordance with the strict rules of organic (ecological) viticulture. In the meantime, the farm has been certified by ECOCERT. Chemical sprays are not used. Through cover crop the vine rows with herbs and clover, the initial soil erosion is counteracted. Self-produced compost made from organic manure, straw and rotted pomace is added to the soil every three years. The greatly reduced yield is between 25 and 40 hectolitres/hectare. Only ripe and healthy grapes are harvested by hand.