Château Tour Grise

The family who produced wines under Château Tour Grise had been around a while, allegedly planting and tending vines since the 19th century. In 1998, they achieved biodynamic status, which they believed to be crucial in creating wines that express a true sense of their terroir. Since then, they had been renting off bits of vineyard to new, younger generation winemakers in an attempt to keep the blood flowing in Saumur, and up until recently they made wine from just 8ha, consisting of 6ha of Cabernet Franc, 1ha Chenin blanc, and 1 ha of Pineau d’Aunis. In the vineyard life flourished; the grass remained long and wild all summer, the vines remained untrimmed and were treated with various special herbal tea preparations of nettles, presses and willows to keep them from sickness. In the winery, nothing is added and nothing is taken away, safe for sometimes a small application of SO2. Unfortunately, Philppe and Françoise gave up winemaking a couple years ago, but luckily we still have a few vintages in stock. Also, for those of us who adored their 'Ze Bulle', Bruno Ciofi has taken over the production of those cuvées!