The renewal of vineyards is part of the natural lifecycle of a wine estate. We recently pulled up two hectares of vines, whose leaf and fruit growing had become more and more aleatory over the last years. To compensate this loss, we have planted young Malbec on two hectares of stony and calcareous fallow land at the slopes above the domaine. As wines had not been grown in this spot for more than 20 years, the soil is free of viruses, offering an extremely healthy environment to the young plants.

With a planting density of some 6000 vines per hectare (exceeding AOC demands), they will produce their first fruit after 4 or 5 years. Planting density is of great influence on both quality and quantity of harvest. Generally, a higher planting density results in lower yields but more concentrated and tasteful grapes. But we also have to be cautious not to plant too many grapevines per hectare, as our poor soils would probably not be able to nourish them.