Domaine de l'A
The Domaine de l'A is a creation of Christine and Stéphane Derenoncourt. After a long career as a consulting oenologist for important Châteaux in Bordeaux and prestigious estates around the world, Stéphane Derenoncourt decided to put his experience and knowledge accumulated over the years to good use, to create his own personal project and finally produce his own wine. Of course, the choice fell on a familiar territory. The estate is located in Sainte-Colombe, near Saint-Émilion, on the right bank of the Bordeaux region. The basic idea is to create wines that can authentically express the territory through the oenological skills acquired over the years of work by Stéphane.
The location of the estate was chosen with extreme care and attention, with the awareness that a great wine can only be born from an exceptional terroir. Generally speaking, the area is characterized by clay and limestone soils with the presence of Fronsadais molasses. In Sainte-Colombe, in particular, the soils are composed of a very thin layer of clay, mixed with flakes of decomposed limestone, which come from a deeper layer consisting of a bank of friable limestone. A perfect soil for obtaining elegant Merlot and Cabernet Franc, with good structure and rich personality. The estate covers an area of 11 hectares, divided into about a dozen parcels, with slightly different pedoclimatic characteristics. The vines have an average age of about 40 years and are cultivated with a density of 6,500 plants per hectare.
The philosophy of the winery aims to create a wine capable of uniting finesse and power, with a soft and seductive profile, but also capable of aging very well over time. Each parcel is worked and vinified separately to obtain the maximum from each vineyard. The winery was built with natural materials, without using cement or metal. The vinifications take place in small wooden vats, with destemmed grapes, or partially destemmed, depending on the characteristics of the vintage. Fermentation occurs spontaneously with indigenous yeasts. The entire process takes place very gently with delicate remontages and manual pump-overs. Depending on the vintage, the wine is aged in barriques for a period ranging from 16 to 18 months.
The Domaine de l'A is a creation of Christine and Stéphane Derenoncourt. After a long career as a consulting oenologist for important Châteaux in Bordeaux and prestigious estates around the world, Stéphane Derenoncourt decided to put his experience and knowledge accumulated over the years to good use, to create his own personal project and finally produce his own wine. Of course, the choice fell on a familiar territory. The estate is located in Sainte-Colombe, near Saint-Émilion, on the right bank of the Bordeaux region. The basic idea is to create wines that can authentically express the territory through the oenological skills acquired over the years of work by Stéphane.
The location of the estate was chosen with extreme care and attention, with the awareness that a great wine can only be born from an exceptional terroir. Generally speaking, the area is characterized by clay and limestone soils with the presence of Fronsadais molasses. In Sainte-Colombe, in particular, the soils are composed of a very thin layer of clay, mixed with flakes of decomposed limestone, which come from a deeper layer consisting of a bank of friable limestone. A perfect soil for obtaining elegant Merlot and Cabernet Franc, with good structure and rich personality. The estate covers an area of 11 hectares, divided into about a dozen parcels, with slightly different pedoclimatic characteristics. The vines have an average age of about 40 years and are cultivated with a density of 6,500 plants per hectare.
The philosophy of the winery aims to create a wine capable of uniting finesse and power, with a soft and seductive profile, but also capable of aging very well over time. Each parcel is worked and vinified separately to obtain the maximum from each vineyard. The winery was built with natural materials, without using cement or metal. The vinifications take place in small wooden vats, with destemmed grapes, or partially destemmed, depending on the characteristics of the vintage. Fermentation occurs spontaneously with indigenous yeasts. The entire process takes place very gently with delicate remontages and manual pump-overs. Depending on the vintage, the wine is aged in barriques for a period ranging from 16 to 18 months.
