As fall progresses in Lavaux, the wines – settling down after the relatively turbulent initial phases of the winemaking process – start to mature in the wine cellar.

Mother Nature may do things well, but we nevertheless watch carefully over the way the wines progress, following their evolution with discerning passion and humility.

The winery

Making Chasselas wines

Harvested manually, Chasselas grapes are crushed then pressed in pneumatic presses. The juice is left to settle overnight then transferred to oak barrels where alcoholic and malolactic fermentations take place. The wines are raised on lees, with regular rackings, until they are bottled.

 

Ilex, our Grand Cru Calamin Chasselas, is vinified differently – in wood only, with no malolactic fermentation.

 

Our specialty wines

Before pressing, Sauvignon and Chenin grapes undergo brief maceration in their skins to bring out their aromas. The must then ferments in wood where the wine is also raised with only the occasional racking to disturb it. To maximize the freshness and fruitiness of these wines, they do not undergo malolactic fermentation.

 

The red varieties undergo a cold pre-fermentation maceration. Alcoholic fermentation only begins after three to five days. Macerating takes between 15 and 25 days. Depending on their structure and origin, these wines may be raised in tanks or wood for a period of time that varies between 12 and 18 months.

Trial wines

It’s only through trying things out that innovation and progress are possible – so in 2009, Domaine Louis Bovard invested in a small 800-liter press to make wine in small quantities.

 

Each year, Riesling, Viognier, Blaufränkisch and other, lesser-known varieties are vinified in the hopes that one day the results will be good enough to grace your table.