Domaine Jaulin-Plaisantin: Yves Plaisantin
This is where Yves Plaisantin enters the story. He was born near Lyon, but grew up in the northern reaches of Anjou, close to Brittany, but not particularly close to any vineyards of note. As a young man he ended up studying philosophy in Nantes, where many of his student friends had part-time jobs in restaurants. With time they all became increasingly interested in wine, but it was only Yves that began to ask himself if this could be a beneficial career move. He first tried his hand working a harvest in Beaujolais, before then committing to studying there for a while. In 1999 he took up an apprenticeship at Domaine Clusel-Roch in Côte-Rôtie, just as the vineyards were being converted to organics, which Yves says was rare in Côte-Rôtie at the time. It is clear that he learnt much when working at Closel-Roch; “it taught me 75% of what I know today”, he told me, speaking fondly of that time.
Before long Yves (pictured) had set his sights on more distant targets, and in 2002 he left for the USA. He worked in Oregon for a couple of years, before then moving to Virginia. During this time he operated as both vineyard manage and winemaker, excellent experience for the broad oversight required when running a small domaine in the Loire Valley.
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