Domaine Belle

The Belle estate has an original history: in the past, vineyards in Larnage were cultivated around the castle and were owned by the Lord of Larnage in the 1600s, when each inhabitant owed him three days' work (one for pruning, one for ploughing and one for harvesting). domaine1In 1769, at the request of Claude François Mure de Larnage, the new seigneur, a village assembly allocated a plot of vines to each family for their own consumption. From the time of the seigneurs until the 1930s, the family estate expanded onto a few neighboring plots, vinified its wines and sold them for local consumption. When Louis Belle (Philippe's grandfather) took over the estate, a profound change occurred. Louis BELLE liked working his vines but did not like making wine, and he joined the Tain l'Hermitage cooperative in 1933. However, as a great winegrower, he continued to acquire some fine plots of land in Larnage and Tain l'Hermitage. When his son Albert took over the family property in the 1970s, the estate extended over two communes (Larnage and Tain) and covered some 4 ha. Albert Belle, passionate about vines and wine, resumed making wine for his own consumption and that of his friends. It wasn't until 1990 that wine came back to the fore and the Belle domaine was created. Under the impetus of Philippe (Albert's son), after studying oenology, they built a modern, functional winery together, giving themselves the means to produce great wines while respecting the terroir. From then on, the estate's vineyard area expanded rapidly, covering different terroirs (pebbles, granite) and appellations (St Joseph), reaching 20 ha in the 2000s. In 2003, Albert retired and Philippe continued alone, passionate about his profession, defending his terroirs and promoting Larnage wines around the world. In 2006, the takeover of a small neighboring vineyard in the Crozes-Hermitage commune necessitated the expansion of the winery, which was completed in 2007 with the modernization of wine-making techniques. Always respectful of the terroir, 2006 will also see the birth of a new cuvée, "Roche Pierre". domaine2In conclusion, the domaine has always been a family property, handed down from generation to generation, with the emphasis on this particular Larnage terroir of white clay, often referred to as "Les Terres Blanches". Today, Domaine Belle covers six communes (Larnage, Crozes-Hermitage, Tain l'Hermitage, Pont de l'Isère, Mercurol and Tournon), three appellations (Crozes Hermitage, Hermitage, Saint Joseph) and 25 hectares of vines, plus apricot orchards and a wine nursery run by Philippe's brother Jean Claude. The story continues with Philippe's son Guillaume's interest in the winegrowing profession and his future arrival on the estate...