
Jurançon Sec Cuvée Marie
Appellation
Jurançon Sec
Farming
Lutte Raisonnée
Varietals
Gros Manseng, Petit Courbu
Vineyards & Viticulture
The vines are grown on 16 hectares with south/southeast exposure on steep slopes at the foot of the Pyrenees, forming a natural amphitheater 45 kilometers from ski resorts. The oldest vines were planted in the 1950s, with high trellising (2.5 meters) intended to protect the buds against spring frost. Alternate rows of soil are tilled, with the other rows grown to natural grass, alternating every year. No herbicides or pesticides are used. The late-harvest grapes are kept dry by the Foehn; a dry, warm wind which funnels in downslope from the Pyrenees.
Soils
Clay, with chalk and flint, covered in gravel and stony deposits washed down from the Pyrenees
Harvest & Vinification
The vineyards are manually harvested in separate passes over the course of the dry Béarnaise harvest. The grapes are immediately pressed in a pneumatic press, avoiding skin contact. Settled and cleared, the musts are fermented in barrel, 50% of which are new. The Jurançon Sec takes up to 20 days to ferment to dryness. Aged in the barrels for 10 months, 10% new, before filtration and bottling.