Domaine des Rochelles: Vineyards
Domaine des Rochelles is located in Saint Jean des Mauvrets on the south bank of the Loire, not at all far from Angers, and directly north of Brissac-Quincé. The facilities are large, but are set back from the main thoroughfare that runs parallel to the course of the Loire, and which also cuts right through the village. They sit on the Chemin des Rochelles, across the road from a lonely-looking parcel of vines. All around the domaine appears to be pasture and woodland, although there are in fact plenty of vineyards located to the south and west, beyond the trees.
There are 60 hectares of vineyards all told, with the typical Anjou varieties planted, namely Chenin Blanc and Cabernet Franc, as well as Cabernet Sauvignon (of course), Grolleau, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay. Generalising, the bedrock is generally slate, schist or both, occasionally with some sandstone elements. More superficially the soils tend towards a sandy, silty, clay combination.
More specifically, both the Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay which are destined for the Lebreton’s vin de pays cuvées, as well as the Chenin Blanc destined for the Anjou Blanc, and also other varieties including Grolleau and Pinot Noir which are earmarked for Crémant de Loire, are planted on lesser soils. These soils are generally combinations of silt, sand and clay, over deeper layers of schist which dates to the Ordovician. The Lebreton family have also planted in 2011 one hectare of Côt, with another plot of just more than one hectare planted in 2014.
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