The romantic men behind the Domaine de l’Arjolle

At first glance, the courtyard of the Domaine de l’Arjolle in the Côtes de Thongue appellation looked like most every other courtyard you see in rural France; a gravel space surrounded on three sides by a farmhouse and barns. Since it was mid-September, grape-harvest time in the Languedoc, there was plenty of activity—and noise. A large, stainless steel sorting table was in the middle of the courtyard. Most of the noise was coming from a tractor that was backing a trailer up to the table. As a hydraulic lift on the trailer tilted its bed up to a 45° angle, a ton or so of grapes slid down onto a conveyor that continued up to and across the length of the table. But listening more closely it was clear that some of the noise was coming from the chattering young and some not so young brawny men, who, along with one lone female, were sorting the grapes on the table before they fell into a destemmer on their way to the wine press.

None of this was unusual or different from what you would see at thousands of other vineyards throughout the region. What was different, however, was the look and demeanor of the people doing the sorting. This is backbreaking, tedious work. You stand for hours, sorting out unripe or over-ripe grapes, leaves, sticks, bugs and everything else that shouldn’t go into the press. I’ve done this work, and it is not pleasant or very invigorating.

But instead of the fatigued, bored look that you might expect to find on the faces of people doing such a monotonous task, there were ear-to-ear grins, the sense of camaraderie that people display when they’re working hard to achieve a common goal, and the back-slapping exuberance that is mostly seen among Rugby players following a particularly good play.

The Domaine de l’Arjolle, and the nearby Château de Margon which it owns, is an-extended family operation. Two brothers Louis-Marie and Prosper Teisserenc, who come from a four-generation family of winemakers, started the vineyard in 1974. In 1986, they were joined by their brother-in-law, Charles Duby, and a nephew, Guilhem de Fozières. Prosper Teisserenc’s son Roland became the fifth member of the family to join in the fun in 1992, and Prosper’s other son, Roch, and the son of Louis-Marie, François, brought the number to seven when they began working with their fathers, brother and uncles in 2004.

Now, no one is ever going to mistake this bunch of large, burly bon vivants for the seven dwarfs, although you would almost not be surprised if they broke into, now and then, a few verses of “Hi Ho, Hi Ho,” as the obvious satisfaction that they got from sorting those grapes was downright infectious. They might, however, in their unfailing optimism, sunny personalities and their high-tech, architecturally-designed aging cellar, be mistaken for an Australian or Californian winegrowing family. It was refreshing seeing this enthusiasm and energy, as the Languedoc is filled with stories of failing vineyards and disgruntled winemakers.

The public face of this cheerful group sports a salt-and-pepper beard, twinkling eyes, an ever-present grin, and boundless enthusiasm. The obviously extroverted Louis-Marie Teisserenc was called “the bearded wonder of the Languedoc,” by Paul Strang in his book The Wines and Winemakers of Languedoc-Roussillon. Louis-Marie Teisserenc is a marketer’s marketer, a commercial whirlwind who has helped the Domaine de l’Arjolle to attain an amazing 80% export rate for the 600,000 bottles of wine that it produces annually. He’s also a degustation wizard, ably explaining the over 15 different wines that are made into single-varietal and blended wines from the 12 different varieties of grapes planted on the 60-ha Domaine de l’Arjolle and the 30-ha Château de Margon.

Each member of this hard-working group of men has his own responsibility: Prosper and his son Roland concentrate on the vines; brother-in-law Charles works the vineyards; nephew Guilhem looks after the equipment; Prosper’s other son, Roch, is the oenologue in the group; and Louis-Marie’s son, François, who received a diploma in viticulture-oenology from the Lycée Agricole d’Orange, and who did internships in vineyards in Burgundy, Bordeaux, Napa Valley and New Zealand, is primarily involved in the cellar and wine-aging.

François’s taste for travel must come from his father, Louis-Marie. The elder Teisserenc is one of the rare Languedoc winemakers who have traveled to California to view the winemaking there. While in Napa Valley, he discovered the quintessential California grape, Zinfandel. He was impressed with how well the grapes retained their acidity in Napa’s warm climate, and, convinced that the variety would do well in the Languedoc, he lobbied French authorities for six years to get permission to plant Zinfandel grapes in France. The Domaine de l’Arjolle now has what he says is the only hectare of Zinfandel planted in France.

With the new EU wine reform, he may be able to plant all the Zinfandel he wants in the area. And their existing 17-year-old vines are paying off—big time. I saw on one US online wine site a bottle of 2001 Z de l’Arjolle Zinfandel Vin de Pays des Côtes du Thongue priced at an astounding $250 a bottle. Even with shipping costs it would be better to go to another online site that I came across in the UK, where a 12-bottle case of the same wine, same vintage, is priced at just over £155, around $245 at current exchange rates.

They’ve identified more than 60 separate parcels of land on their two properties with varying compositions of the clay/limestone soil and marine sediment that are common to the Côtes de Thongue, with different exposure to the sun, and with different drainage. The decision on which grape variety to plant is based on each parcel’s soil and climatic conditions. Besides the Zinfandel, they’ve planted a Medoc variety, Carménare; Cabernet franc, a variety more commonly associated with the Loire Valley and used in blended red wine from Bordeaux; three Bordelais varieties, Cabernet sauvignon and Merlot for the reds, and Sauvignon blanc for the whites; Chardonnay and Pinot gris from Burgundy; Viognier from the Rhône Valley; and traditional Mediterranean varieties such as Grenache noir, Syrah and Muscat blancs à petits grains.

In addition to these micro-terroir plantings, the Domaine de l’Arjolle is also conducting an experiment on crop yields that involves high-density plantings of Syrah and Viognier vines on three hectares. Instead of the normal 4,000 plants per hectare, they’ve planted 8,000 vines per hectare.

There’s an amazing, Willy-Wonka-worthy array of Vins de Pays wines available, including an outrageously dark rosé, the Méridienne, with a Grand Cru-like complexity, a creamy mouth-feel, and distinctive, red-fruit notes; a Sauvignon-Viognier-Muscat-à-petits-grains blend called Equinoxe, a well-balanced white wine with an elegant yellow hue, hints of fruits and flowers, and a long, buttery-citrus finish; and the Cuvée Cabernet-Merlot, a slightly-oaky red with a rich, vibrant color, smooth tannins and a complex aroma of red and dried fruits.

Arjolle wines, most notably the reds, are known for their silky-soft, rich style and wood blending. What’s surprising, given the masculine personalities behind them, is that they are quite feminine with their silky tannins and voluptuous, flowery notes. There’s nothing wrong with this, as these finessed wines, with their distinctive fresh, balanced character are the perfect match for a wide range of foods. It’s just surprising that a group of burly guys can make such an assortment of light-bodied, delicate and elegant wines.

The French have a saying that a wine reflects the character of the man or woman who made it. Although I have never heard it said, maybe it’s possible that the wine may also have the character of the winemaker’s loved ones, which may very well be the case at the Domaine de l’Arjolle.

Tagged as: Languedoc