Chateau D'Esclans is a name that will raise eyebrows and bring out a smile on the corner of every wine lover's lips... It's a winery that has transformed the image of rosé wine forever and changed the understanding of Provencal rosés in less than a decade. A winery that many others around the world are trying to imitate. A trendsetter. An innovator.

A quick look at my notes where I jotted down illegibly: "a visit to Chateau D'Esclans at 11am (September 3)". I have enough time... I can spend some more time in this paradise called Hotel La Reserve Ramatuelle... If I remember correctly, the winery is about 30 minutes' drive from Saint Tropez... But, let me check it once again on google maps . Hmm .... The vinegrowers' village of La Motte... Oh no, it's not 30 minutes but 30 kilometers... And it means an hour and fifteen minutes' drive... Well, being late is out of the question!!!

I bolted and ran out of the hotel. The guy from the parking lot also ran to bring me a car (I guess he figured out that I was in a hurry and it was a matter of life and death). I sat in the car rented upon my arrival in Provence... I have an impression that there has never been so many roundabouts, traffic lights and old ladies in their tiny cars along the route. If only they would touch the gas pedal... Fortunately, there are no speed cameras on the road in that part of Provence, so I won't have a souvenir to remind me of that fast ride...

Indeed, I enter the parking lot in front of the winery's wine shop with an acceptable 15 minutes' delay... Tom Schreckinger, director of communications at Chateau D'Esclans, welcomes me and from the very beginning, I have an impression as if we have known each other for a long time.

The winery and the entire estate are located in the Vallée d'Esclans, nestled between two mountain ranges and the entire valley extends towards the Mediterranean. Across the swimming pool and terrace, one can admire spectacular views over Massif des Maures. In the clear sky, an azure blue horizontal line in the distance indicates the Mediterranean Sea.

Of course, first we go to visit the vineyards. The total surface covered with vineyards is 72.9 hectares, with 60% of the plantation being Grenache, while the other varieties present in the vineyards are Rolle (Vermentino), Cinsault, Merlot, Mourvedre, Syrah and Tibouren. To better understand the terroir, vineyards that are situated in the valley are planted on red soil, rich in iron and clay, with great sun exposure throughout the day. These plots feature younger vineyards. The vineyards also spread over the slopes of nearby hills. The soil is prevailingly composed of chalk / limestone there. The belt of Mediterranean forests continues above the vineyards. And at the top of the hill, on a plot covering ​​some 4 hectares above the forest, there is an 80-year-old Grenache vineyard and grapes from that vineyard are used to make wine under the Garrus label.

In addition to its own vineyards, Chateau D'Esclans also buys grapes from subcontractors, with all the grapes purchased coming from a 30km circle around the winery because all wines are bottled under the Côtes de Provence appellation. These grapes, together with grapes sourced from their own vineyards, are used for wines labelled The Palm and Whispering Angel.

Considering the climate of Provence, it is quite logical that the harvest in the vineyards starts very early in the morning and lasts until noon. In the vineyards of their subcontractors, harvesting is done at night by grape harvesters, under the spotlight.

The winery is like an ant farm. Harvesting has just started the previous day, so tractors will be continually arriving over the next 30 days with neatly stacked 10 kg crates. About 70 pickers are hired during the harvest. Interestingly, I notice that there are plenty of young guys and girls among pickers. Chateau D'Esclans has no problem with manpower, since the number of applicants always outnumbers the number of hired pickers.

In the winery, everyone remembers with great emotion previous harvests in which the famous oenologist Patrick Leon took part in the grape processing and vinification. After many years of working at Chateau Mouton Rothschild, believing in the vision of Sacha Lichine, he came to Provence to build together with Sacha the identity of Chateau D'Esclans wines. Patrick Léon passed away last year in December, so this is the first harvest without his presence.

At about one o'clock in the afternoon, grape pickers gathered in small groups slowly arrive along the dusty road that passes through the estate... Work is over for today, and now they can relax a little and take a break during the harvest lunch. We join them. Everyone generally points out that the quality of grapes this year in Provence has been excellent, provided that meteorological conditions remain favorable until the end of harvest. This year's heat wave in Provence, plentiful sunshine and heat in the summer, with sporadic summer showers, have helped the grapes ripen harmoniously. The vines have adapted well to such conditions. Also, this year there were no major problems in protecting the vines from disease. Chateau D'Esclans expects high-quality wines from this year's harvest. And since bottling of Whispering Angel is about to start somewhere in December, then we will be able to verify this already during the New Year and Christmas holidays.

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