Jonc Blanc Estate

A unique terroir

In this unspoilt enclave, limestone is everywhere. The vineyard plots are separated from other crops by steep natural slopes and woods that surround the limestone plateau. A study of the region’s terroir units confirms the unique characteristics of Domaine Jonc Blanc. The three types of terroir are as follows:

• White limestone known as ‘Castillon’: a fairly hard white lacustrine limestone that forms the bulk of the subsoil. The bedrock, lying very close to the surface, produces poor soils (rendosols) that are ideal for vine cultivation. The topsoil is between 15 and 25 cm deep – no more!
• Asterian limestone: another part of the soil consists of surface soil, but overlying a bed of exposed Asterian limestone (yellow Cretaceous limestone). It is found in abundance in Saint-Emilion
• Ostréa marl: nestled between the two limestone layers lies a narrow strip of Ostréa marl. It lends the wine iodine-like notes and unrivalled freshness!

These are typically vineyard soils, which lend a great deal of minerality to the wines produced from them. This ranges from a fresh mouthfeel to a saline mineral tension, and sometimes even a chalky texture on the palate!

Biodynamic farming at the Jonc Blanc estate

Steiner, who founded biodynamics in 1923, encourages us to develop a sensitive approach to agriculture. And to put it into practice, so that we can test our intuitions against reality. If we make an effort to listen to nature and try to forge a rich, symbiotic relationship with the environment around us, we can discover a wealth of resources and alternatives for farming in a different way!

Key practices in this field:

Natural vine training, respect for the seasons and natural cycles, no pruning, no green harvesting.

Inter-row crops enhance soil vitality and complement the vines:

• The vibrant colour of flowering mustard will bring life to a somewhat dormant chalky soil as winter draws to a close
• A winter cereal rich in silica and trace elements will bring ‘verticality’ and restore balance to the monotonous landscape of a dormant vineyard
• A row of flowering plants, spaced evenly every 20 metres, will attract pollinating insects. It will therefore provide food and shelter for a whole range of so-called ‘beneficial’ wildlife, thereby avoiding the need for insecticides

Furthermore, the use of biodynamic preparations, as taught by Steiner in 1924, provides our vines with the essential connection to the ‘etheric and astral’ forces that surround us.

Isabelle Carles and Franck Pascal tell you all about it

“There needs to be a touch of chaos in wine to stir our emotions!”

It is often said that wine is not a ‘natural’ product and that only vinegar is the true result of the ‘natural’ transformation of grapes.

We are often told that it is man who ‘makes’ the wine, not nature.

That’s true! We must admit that for three thousand years, people have been using their ingenuity to prevent wine from turning sour!

Throughout history, we have had to rely on plants, resins, honey, spices and other traditional remedies to preserve and enjoy wine for as long as possible.

Admittedly, modern oenology, following in Pasteur’s footsteps, has enabled us to understand and better control a process that was previously a mystery. But this has come at the cost of losing some of its magic and poetry.

It is regrettable that, to date, the production of a wine that respects life and the natural processes involved in its creation often proves incompatible with the tasting criteria imposed by the AOCs through INAO decrees.

“To be in tune with life is to accept a little chaos in wine!”

The absence of what oenologists refer to as ‘defects’ – in relation to a well-established and now standardised production process – is by no means a guarantee of quality! That would be to disregard the emotions that tasting a wine evokes in us.

What about the intensity of the sensation, the perceived vibrancy? Isn’t emotion, in every respect, superior to a chemical analysis that adheres to established standards when it comes to wine?

“There must remain a little chaos within us, so that we may give birth to a dancing star,” wrote Nietzsche in *Thus Spoke Zarathustra*. In its quest to standardise everything, mainstream viticulture has ended up transforming the dancing star into a meteorite stranded in a desert …

(Source: Domaine Jonc Blanc)

A few photos of the Jonc Blanc estate