Many dream - but few actually do it. Karen and Nick Kitchener did it - and bought a vineyard in Gascony at Manciet (32 Gers, Midi-Pyrenees) in 2004 - the Domaine de Lauroux producing red,white and rosé Cotes de Gascogne wines, Floc de Gascogne and Armagnac.
Their website has a VINEYARD DIARY which is regularly updated and provides a fascinating insight and connection with the realities of running a vineyard - a lot of hard work and incertainty by the sounds of it! It is reassuring to learn that the temperature in mid-April is already reaching 23-24oC, although perhaps more surprising to learn how cold and wet the winter months were - with snow too!
Karen has also written up the equally daunting task of actually finding and buying a suitable vineyard. There are apparently plenty of small "hobby" vineyards available in France, attached to beautiful houses, which would allow you to "play" at making wine with your own label. But the Kitchener's wanted a proper business vineyard, and unsurprisingly found it initially difficult to get the French estate agents and banks to take them seriously - especially as they were novices in the actual business of making wine on a commercial scale. Clearly there are many daydreamers around - and who hasn't looked in an estate agent's window and fantasised about setting up home in some delightful corner of France. According to one agent he received ober 1000 enquiries each year for vineyards, and ended up selling just one!
Clearly you need to think such a venture through as fully as possible - and this is where the Kitcheners got it right - setting criteria for the amount of vines (40 acres at Domaine de Lauroux);good range of products (red,white,rosé wines, floc and armagnac); scope to develop; well-equipped and with potential. Cotes de Gascogne was not their first choice, with their search starting around Bergerac (24 Dordogne, Aquitaine).But after looking at 30 or more properties, they decided it was too expensive a region - indeed Bergerac as an appellation has improved beyond recognition over the last 10-15 years - plus the increasing number of cheap flights direct from the UK has pushed up property prices, The Cotes de Gascogne by contrast is still in the course of transition from a mainly bulk quaffing wine region, dominated by a number of co-operatives. There is potential in the region to develop the wines, especially through small independent domaines with a focus on quality.
The Domaine de Lauroux Cotes de Gascogne Blanc Sec was a dellightfully fresh and crisp dry w hite - the addition of a little Gros Manseng adding a touch of roundness to the zingy acidity of the Colombard and Ugni Blanc grapes.
Andy at spittoon.biz has reviewed the 2 red wines on offer from the Domaine de Lauroux, and more details are available on our website at www.frenchduck.co.uk - including details of their B&B and self-catering accommodation - a house in the middle of the vines in the middle of the calm and gentle Gascony countryside - sounds good!
