FROM VINE TO BOTTLe
Certification
Certified Environmentally Friendly Agriculture in Aquitaine (AREA) level 2, and High Environmental Value (HVE) level 3.
HARVESTs
Vegetation cover is encouraged between rows, leaves are thinned after flowering and the bunches are also thinned, allowing the fruit to ripen in the best conditions possible.
Harvesting is carried out selectively, always starting with the Merlot before moving on to the Cabernet.
This period requires a great deal of attention and precision, as we have to ensure that the harvest quality is optimal, sorting the grapes by different nuances in quality (according to the terroir and vine age).
WINEMAKING
The wine is made using traditional Bordeaux techniques, in temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks.
Work in the tanks (pumping over, punching down and releasing) and maceration times are determined according to the characteristics of each vintage and depending on the type of wine desired.
After alcoholic and malolactic fermentation, the blend for the first wine is decided on after tasting and selection by our consultant oenologist Mr Eric Boissenot. Only two thirds of the production is used in the first wine. This ensures that the atypical grape variety blend we use at Coufran is expressed to the full, producing a great wine that is ideal for ageing and ranks among the best in the appellation each year.
MATURING
The wine is then matured in barrels for 12 months. A quarter of the barrels are replaced with new ones each year (using only French oak).
When the time comes for fining, in the spring of the second year, the wine is blended one last time to ensure homogeneity in the Grand Vin before it is bottled.
BOTTLING
We use natural corks, « extra heavy » bottles, a vacuum bottling process in compliance with the HACCP standard, and the batch number is engraved on each bottle (from the 2005 vintage).
The bottles are then stored on our air-conditioned premises to optimise the ageing process and allow us to provide our customers with ready-to-drink wines that have been stored in the perfect conditions.
