Domaine Lucien Crochet
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Country of Origin: France
Location: Sancerre
People: Gilles & Laurence Crochet, Owners & Winemakers
Viticulture: Practicing Organic
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Lucien Crochet merged the two estates of Lucien Picard (his father-in-law) and André Crochet (his father) to create Domaine Lucien Crochet. Monsieur Picard was one of the very first growers in the Sancerre district to begin bottling his wines and selling them primarily to restaurants in Paris. Lucien Crochet expanded the work of his father-in-law and, over a 30-year period, also expanded the domaine so that it now encompasses 35 hectares of vineyards, almost all of which are located in the village of Bué with smaller holdings in the neighboring villages of Vinon and Crézancy. Today, Lucien's son Gilles oversees the estate with his wife Laurence.
26 hectares are planted to Sauvignon Blanc and the remaining 9 hectares are planted to Pinot Noir. The soils are clay and limestone from the Oxfordian and Kimmeridgian eras. The vineyards are on slopes of varying severity and run from south-east to south to southwest in their exposure to the sun. Since 1989 only organic supplements have been used in the vineyards. 60% of the estate’s vineyards have grass growing between the rows with the soil being worked (hoed and plowed) just at the base of the vines, while 25% of the vineyards are fully plowed and hoed. The harvest is manual. There is a substantial range of wines produced at the Domaine Lucien Crochet.
Media Links
The New York Times: The Sancerre Moment
The Wall Street Journal: Wine's Tom Hanks - Why Everyone Loves Sancerre
The New York Times: Sancerre - Say It With Feeling