Domaine Gauthier père et fils, Clos Nouveau Bourgueil 2018 Bouteille (75cl)

Histoire du domaine

The documented family history begins in 1880, when a Gauthier ancestor abandoned his profession as a potter to work the land in Benais. After acquiring parcels made accessible by the phylloxera crisis, he planted vines there that he grafted himself. In the 1970s, the family gradually shifted this previously mixed-farming operation to focus primarily on viticulture. Laurent Gauthier passed down traditional practices to his son Pierre, notably horse-drawn ploughing. Pierre joined his parents in 1979 and ran the estate using conventional methods for a time before returning to soil cultivation and converting the property to organic farming in 2000. His son Rodolphe, trained in Montreuil-Bellay, joined him in 2005. That same year, the family acquired Clos Nouveau, a former vineyard linked to the château de Benais and separated from it during the French Revolution. In poor condition when taken over, this 1.15-hectare clos was restored and about a quarter of its vines were replanted; no cuvée was produced in 2006, and the first vintage signed by the Gauthiers was 2007. Pierre and Rodolphe continue to work together, while Rodolphe is now listed as the owner and head of winemaking.