L’ile Rouge Petit Terre

About L’ile Rouge Petit Terre

L’ile Rouge Petit Terre is 100% organic Bordeaux-raised Merlot, but a very unexpected wine. Carbonic maceration gives this red a bouncy, fruity vitality. Black and red berries, soft acidity, and tangy tannins.

About Winery L’ile Rouge

Antonin Jamois was in no way predestined to become a winegrower. After studying agronomy in his hometown of Paris, he left for Argentina and Brazil, then settled for 10 years in Madagascar (hence the name of the estate.) In Madagascar, he worked as an aquaculturist and as a scuba diver. It was the birth of his daughter that motivated him to move back to France in 2014.

At a place called Fontarnaud in Lugasson, Antonin a little over 2 Ha of vines, isolated between meadows and a forest. The soils here are shallow, clay-limestone and rest on a “limestone with starfish” rock. The original vines, initially composed of Merlot, are being diversified. Castets, a grape variety forgotten after the phylloxera crisis in the late 19th century, is being resurrected in the vineyard. Antonin continues to experiment with other varieties as well.

Antonin’s vineyard work focuses on organic farming but is also inspired by permaculture to preserve soil fertility and promote biodiversity in the vines. Everything is carried out by hand including the harvest. The vinification cellar located winery makes it possible to preserve all the freshness of the fruit. The grapes are vinified without inputs, with native yeasts, and without added sulfur. This underground cellar, a freestone quarry from the 19th century, allows the red wines to be aged in barrels at a constant temperature and sparkling wines to be made.