Soil, vines & wine
by Blaise Duboux
A passion for winegrowing
The love of the earth was inscribed in me, handed down from the hands of my grandfather Samuel. Very early on, as I was walking with him through the vineyards, my little wicker hood loaded with Grandma Mathilde’s famous sugar toast, I was fully immersed in this delicious happiness of my “4 o’clock goûter” sitting on a wall or between two stumps.
Even at such a young age, his simple explanations, so respectful of the nourishing plant, made me feel the raw strength of nature. Throughout his life the vine gave him so many worries and so much happiness. Growing up with my father Vincent, I learned to respect the perpetually renewed and always different cycles that make up the sustainability of the vineyard. He accomplished his work with vigorous determination and enormous respect for the plant.
Subject to the elements of the heavens, the winegrower that he was understood that one should not expect anything from Providence, but rather submit to the constraints, those that forge the character of man and make him free to be himself by cultivating the earth.
His calm assurance made me understand that the land is to be cherished.
In the logical continuation of life, after my studies and a Bachelor of Oenological Sciences, I first engaged in reasoned culture and its popularization. Naturally, I undertook what seemed right to me, leading to production without the use of synthetic products, respectful of this nourishing land.
The development of the estate
Winemaker and wine engineer HES-SO, I perpetuate the culture of the generations that preceded me by shaping the landscape, taming the vineyard, and by enriching the land. It is here that I raise wines, capricious children but faithful to the terroir and the sky of Lavaux.
My father Vincent entrusted me with the estate and its destiny a few years ago. I have developed the vineyard, expanded its assortment of grape varieties with care, and today I produce eleven white and red wines full of character. As a winemaker in Lavaux, my passion naturally falls to the Chasselas. The Dézaley Haut de Pierre is one of the jewels in the crown of our estate. I am particularly attached to the notion of «terroir» which is expressed through each of my wines.
The conversion to Organic
After 23 years of integrated viticulture and a gentle approach to organic and biodynamic cultivation, it was clear to me, that the logical follow-up to the announcement of the end of chemical treatments by helicopter in the vineyard of Lavaux, was the registration of our entire vineyard for organic certification.
Annual organic certification by bio-inspecta (CH-BIO-006)
Blaise Duboux, viticulture and oenology engineer
Our wine selection
Commitment
More than wine...
a philosophy and commitment to the profession
Managing and animating an estate means first of all knowing the environment perfectly, understanding the conditions of its (longevity) sustainability and putting its passion at the service of its development. The tradition is there, patient and secular. It remains to give it a future and it also requires a commitment outside my own business.
I see Lavaux as a fertile and luminous link for which I am committed body and soul. The care given to our land has earned us the “Bio-Inspecta” certification, granted to those who manage in sublimating the terroir and its fruits. My quest for authenticity requires expertise and irreprochable respect for traditions and the environment.
I like the idea of bringing along a few winemakers concerned with ethics and passion, particularly my commitment to the Arte Vitis Association which is dedicated to unity and innovation.
The promotion of the Vaudois and Swiss wines as well as the promotion of the heritage are causes that concern me and motivate me to play an active role in inter-professional associations such as: Lavaux World Heritage, the Communauté de la vigne et du vin de Lavaux, the Memory of Swiss Wines or Lavaux Vin Bio.