All our grapes are picked by hand and put into small aerated cases which hold 25kg. We take this care to avoid crushing the grapes, which can lead to premature oxidation, particularly with white grapes. Where possible, we pick early in the morning, so the grapes are brought into the winery cool. This avoids any chance of an unwanted start to fermentation.
Once in the winery, the grapes are sorted by at least six people, which can rise to as many as 15. White grapes are sorted by the bunch, with anything not in optimal health removed. They are pressed slowly and gently, and after a 24-hour period of settling at between 10ºC and 12ºC, the juice is put into barrel by gravity to await the start of fermentation.
Our red grapes are sorted twice: once in whole bunches, and then again as individual grapes after de-stemming, which we do 100%. Everything is done by gravity; our grapes are never pumped.
Fermentation of the reds is fairly long at Domaine Dublère: between 15 and 21 days. During this process, we seek to extract the maximum amount of color and aroma elements, to ensure that our wines will age, as well as being enjoyable young.
All our wines are fermented with the native yeasts that arrive in the winery with the grapes. These yeast strains form part of the wine's terroir, and we have made a philosophical choice to use them instead of inoculating with industrial yeast.
We follow the maturation process in our cellars with scrupulous care. The wines are topped up every week, and after 18 months in barrel -- of which about 30% are new each year, depending on appellation -- they are racked into our stainless steel tanks and assembled for bottling. After four to eight weeks in tank, the wines are bottled by gravity, with neither fining nor filtration. We offer a choice of closure to "en primeur" buyers: either traditional cork or screw cap. The goal of this exercise is to ensure a wine that's a true reflection of its unique terroir.
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