Durif, an ancient variety that has long been planted in the Northern Rhone, is a cross between Syrah and Pourcin and was originally planted in California after being mistaken for Petite Sirah, but was later replanted.
The plateau of Saint-Pierre-de-Boeuf.
Born in 1961, Mr. Cuilleron studied winemaking and viticulture at a vocational school before taking over his uncle's domaine in 1986.
In his mid-30s, he has already reached the top level as a white wine producer in the Rhone region. In particular, he owns a large vineyard of 12 hectares in Condrieu, where he produces outstanding wines that are complex, rich, well-balanced and have depth of flavor. His Vieilles Vignes made from old vines and Récolte Tartives, made from perfectly ripe grapes picked later, are truly impressive. The vines are 15 to 60 years old, and only the most fully ripe grapes are harvested, with only the minimum amount harvested. These are then carefully selected again on the selection table.
For red wines, up to 30% of the grapes are fermented whole-cluster in cement and stainless steel tanks, where temperature control is easy.
White wines are primarily fermented in barrels. After a long period of maceration, they are aged for 6 to 18 months in small barrels (10 to 100% new barrels). They are frequently batonnaged and bottled without filtering.
Currently, the domaine owns 75 hectares, making it the largest in the Northern Rhone region.
In 2016, they opened a new winery and adopted gravity flow, continuing to strive to produce even more outstanding wines.