Château du Vieux Parc

Until the 1960s, the wine was made on the estate and sold entirely to brokers. But when Guy Panis took over the reins, he brought many changes both to the cultivation of the vines and to the great adventure of bottling on the estate. The beginnings of export sales and the awards won in the competitions that followed, encouraged his son Louis to leave teaching to take up the torch and, in his turn, drive the estate forward. Claudine, his wife, is also committed to the estate, managing the administrative side as well as the tasting cellar, open all year round to tourists from all over the world. Since the 2005 harvest, the 6th generation has joined the estate with Guillaume, who breathes new life into Château du Vieux Parc with his youth and enthusiasm. Now it's his turn to take the estate into the future, using the know-how handed down by his family and adapting it to the demands of today's world. Sustainable viticulture, water management, food safety, HACCP and international trade are all important factors to be mastered if Château du Vieux Parc is to continue producing great wines for the pleasure of lovers of fine bottles. In the Corbières mountains, wine is a matter of tradition, passion and high standards. One of the few agricultural activities possible in this arid region, vine-growing dates back to the 2nd century BC. The Corbières offer a wide variety of soils: schist, sandstone, limestone and marl, and are ideally suited to providing superb terroirs for winegrowing: the dry, sunny, warm Mediterranean climate favors long vine cycles, and the year-round north-westerly wind keeps the vineyards healthy. Situated between Carcassonne and Narbonne, Château du Vieux Parc has been built over the centuries in a paradise of flora and fauna, in the midst of unspoilt nature. This 70-hectare private winery is located in the Lézignan terroir, in the small village of Conilhac Corbières. The estate comprises 40 ha of AOP Corbières and 30 ha of Vin de Pays. The terroir is composed of south-facing limestone-clay slopes and stony terraces. The climate is Mediterranean, very hot and dry, with very little rainfall between June and October. Protected by the Alaric massif to the west, rain rarely reaches the village. The prevailing Cers wind, or tramontane, sculpts the landscape and provides perfect conditions for grape ripening. The vines are cultivated according to the principle of "culture raisonnée", in order to respect the soil and limit the use of chemical treatments to the strict minimum. The estate has been certified Vitéalys-Agriculture Raisonnée since 2008. The grapes are harvested at optimum ripeness, to enhance their fruitiness. The grapes are sorted and destemmed to obtain supple, elegant tannins.