Château Sainte-Marguerite, a skillful balance between tradition and modernity

Olivier and Enzo Fayard, winemakers at Sainte-Marguerite, coordinated a harvesting schedule based on daily analyses and tastings of the berries. This made it possible to harvest at the most suitable times, when the grapes showed a perfect balance between maturity and acidity.

Château Sainte-Marguerite, savant équilibre entre tradition et modernité

HARVEST QUALITY AND PRODUCTIVITY Thus, at 6:30 AM at sunrise, we met on a gentle slope overlooking the Mediterranean and the Golden Islands, Porquerolles and Port-Cros. The goal: to harvest a plot of Cinsault Noir, with its bloom-covered berries showing a beautiful aromatic concentration, an important characteristic of Sainte-Marguerite wines. Cinsault is a grape variety that remains discreet in blends, but is essential for bringing all the warmth of the South to the excellent Sainte-Marguerite rosés.

Olivier Fayard was waiting for us with his harvesters and, above all, with a New Holland harvesting machine. "This machine is excellence reinvented. It offers the very best in harvest quality and productivity, with shakers that gently detach the berries, combined with a destemmer-separator device that guarantees absolute respect for the vine and the grapes," he explained.

Then the harvest begins, a key moment in the cycle that marks the end of the wine-growing season. The harvester, after covering a few rows of vines, brought back 4 tons of destemmed grapes, quickly poured into a trailer to be transported to the cellar for direct pressing at a controlled temperature. "Through limited contact, the pigments and aromas contained in the skin mix with the juice and begin to color it," added Olivier Fayard, as a recognized expert.

Out of the press, we tasted a glass of "bernache", the grape must as they call it in the Chablisien region—almost wine, cloudy with suspended yeasts and lots of sugar. The must is then sent to temperature-controlled vats for alcoholic fermentation. Once the wines are crafted, they are stored in oak barrels for aging.

Since 2003, the estate has practiced 100% organic farming, certified by ECOCERT, and ensures vegan, 100% plant-based production without any animal-derived inputs. In conclusion, Olivier and Enzo Fayard reviewed the main stages of rosé winemaking, and guests tasted the estate's iconic grape varieties, which are used to craft the exceptional Cru Classé wines of Château Sainte-Marguerite.

TASTE OF PROVENCE Passion, high standards, and an exceptional vineyard shape remarkable expertise and unique wines. To taste them, one must experience a visit to the cellar built in 2020, at the initiative of Olivier and Enzo Fayard, on the Château Sainte-Marguerite estate.

The welcome reserved for visitors is warm and generous, ensuring they experience a moment of sharing and pleasure around wine. Tasting included.

At the estate, visitors can enjoy a multi-sensory tasting of AOP Côtes-de-Provence rosé wines. This experience is designed to showcase the image of an authentic Provence.

Taste of Provence – Prélude is dedicated to rosé wine. Thus, we appreciate the dominant notes of peach, jasmine, and grapefruit in Symphonie Rosé, and the notes of pear, lemon, and grapefruit in Fantastique Rosé, Cru Classé des Côtes-de-Provence. These cuvées illustrate the skillful balance between tradition and modernity that has defined the identity of Sainte-Marguerite in Provence since its beginnings.

In October, discover the last two culinary experiences of the year at the estate's table!