Our Philosophy
History to future
With respect to the long history of quality wines made at La Yotte, we fell in love with the wide ranging soils on the steep slopes towards the Garonne river. Quality wines will once again come out of our centuries old winery, but with notable differences. With modern equipment, heating and electricity generated by our solar panels, which fuel robots working the land, we feel a harmony of a proud history linking up with the most modern of techniques that enables a strive towards quality even further.
Organic practices
Having replanted our land with tens of thousands of young vines, we take our parenting roles seriously. Instead of chemicals absorbed by the vine and soil, we have used organic practices from the first day of the little vines’ existence. Our vines have never (never!) been touched by pesticides, insecticides and herbicides, making childhood sometimes challenging but they are toughened up to deal with challenges that await them. Tough love is our motto. Oh and we happily drink our well water, we know what is (not) in it!
UnUsual varietIEs
While a nightmare in terms of wait and costs, the significant benefit of replanting is that we could have a long and hard think about what the wines we wanted to make. This results complexity in the cellar but ensure we can make wines like nobody else. Old clones of Bordelaise Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Castets like our region in the early 19th century and Touriga Nacional to enjoy the ever hotter and longer summers of Bordeaux. These are vinified separately but will be harmonious in combination with each other.
Highest quality
With extensive soil samples, we picked varieties, clones and rootstocks that love their new home and can battle the challenging climate. We plant with higher density than the appellation asks to encourage the vines to go deep for water and nutrients. We work tirelessly to keep our vineyards clean from sickness and pests to grow the healthiest grapes possible allowing slow and steady ripeness before we pick. With beautiful berries to our winery, achieving the highest quality is a whole lot less difficult.
Family home
Moving from Sweden, we chose La Yotte as our family home. It was the place we fell for, centuries old structures and healthy beautiful land, waters and forests. We loved the deer, rabbits, foxes, wild boar, peacocks (!), owls, lizards, black kites and many other animals that we are sharing the land with. Planting vines has annoyingly provided free lunches for some rather than scaring them off. La Yotte is a place to breathe and cherish nature. With respect to the surroundings and long history, we are proud to call it our home.
Food and flavour passion
Stemming from a true passion for food and drink, we love wine for the sake for the enjoyment it brings together with good food and company. By the same token we intend to offer wines from our organic grapes that can be enjoyed by themselves but more often than not in combination with our favourite cooking. And obviously, we want to enjoy a glass while preparing the meal too. Having several varieties and treating each differently in the winery, we are not a one trick pony.
