Château de Fesles: Vineyards
Château de Fesles is located on the outskirts of the village of Bonnezeaux itself, well within the Bonnezeaux appellation which stretches over three distinct slopes which run down to the waters of the Layon, facing southeast and southwest. These three slopes are name La Montagne, Beauregard and Fesles (or Fêle on some maps) and naturally the latter is where we find the Fesles vineyard.
The top of the Fesles slope is the highest land within the appellation, sitting at at altitude of 83 metres above sea level. Pierre-Jean Sauvion asserts that from this vantage point you can make out the spires of 21 of Anjou’s many churches; I am sure he is correct, although I confess I have not tried to count them myself. These slopes are naturally schist, the rock that defines the western Anjou vineyards, or L’Anjou Noir as this half of the region is known, although there are also terraces of gravel and clay.
The vineyard itself covers 40 hectares; as of the 2025 harvest 37 hectares of this estate were planted up. Given that the entire Bonnezeaux appellation covers only 96 hectares, the dominance of this estate in the region is immediately apparent. Having said that, today only a small fraction of the vineyard is dedicated to Bonnezeaux. Plantings of Chenin Blanc account for 22 hectares of the vineyard, the fruit from the best parcels, including the historic La Chapelle parcel, will be channelled into the Bonnezeaux. Earlier-picked fruit without botrytis will be used to fashion an Anjou Blanc, as well as a recently introduced example of Crémant de Loire.
