In the vineyards
Privileged relationships
with growers for 25 years
The development of Les Jamelles wines would not have been possible without the relationships that Catherine and Laurent were able to establish with several Languedoc growers in the early 1990s.
Even though they had no material attachments in the region, armed with their conviction they were able to persuade those growers to partake in their project, thereby gaining access to top-quality grapes. These growers even opened the doors of their wineries to the couple so that they could oversee the vinification of their wines themselves.
The majority of them have remained faithful partners over the years and continue to supply grapes or musts that go into the crafting of the Les Jamelles cuvées.
Securing supplies
Beginning in 2010, Catherine and Laurent wanted to secure supplies in order to meet growing demand in all markets. To do so, they signed contracts for 400 hectares of vines with growers who committed to respecting strict specifications: eco-responsible vineyard management, harvest date chosen according to when the technical team deemed the grapes were at their peak of maturity, group reflection on which grape varieties to plant in which plot… For all of these points, there has always been very close collaboration between the growers and the Les Jamelles technical team.
Les Jamelles vineyards
In order to have better control over the supply and quality of the grapes, Catherine & Laurent reinforced their rooting in the vineyards of the Languedoc by purchasing their first vines in 2015, twenty years after the launch of their range of wines.
It is in Ouveillan, on the plain near Narbonne, that they purchased sixty hectares of vines, located along the Canal du Midi, on the former Aude riverbed, in a clayey-silt terroir that contains a considerable proportion of gravel. Many grape varieties are grown there: Cinsault, Grenache Gris, Mourvèdre… Today, this vineyard is undergoing complete reorganization so that it can better meet Les Jamelles’ requirements in terms of both quality and quantity.
Selecting the Languedoc’s finest terroirs
After over 25 years of scouring the vineyards in every nook and cranny of the Languedoc, Catherine and her team have succeeded in getting a handle on this diversity of unrivalled terroirs and selecting those that allow for the finest expression of each of the 26 varietals in the Les Jamelles range.
For the most part, the wines come from approximately fifteen terroirs that are dispersed throughout the entire Languedoc-Roussillon region, with a concentration in the Aude and Hérault departments.
At the winery
After the vineyards, the work continues at the winery.
Each Les Jamelles wine is the result of a blend of grapes from diverse, meticulously selected terroirs. Each terroir is unique, standing out for its location, exposure, soil profile and climate, which impart particular organoleptic characteristics to the grapes cultivated there.
Catherine and her team endeavour to blend the wines from different terroirs in order to produce cuvées that boast perfect balance. Cuvées that are typical of their varietal with a style that is delectable, harmonious and expressive.
This subtle balancing act repeats itself vintage after vintage. It is orchestrated by Catherine Delaunay, creator of Les Jamelles wines, who relies on her exceptional olfactive memory, the blending know-how of her team, and a state-of-the-art winery at the heart of the vineyards in the Corbières region.
Catherine, the Les Jamelles “nose”
Guaranteeing the style of the wines for over 25 years now, she is also – and above all – the Les Jamelles “nose”. A key player in the blending of the cuvées, her exceptional olfactive memory allows her to compose the wines just as a “nose” in the perfume industry composes fragrances, in a perpetual creation process.
A blending session in pictures
A unique winery in the Languedoc
Catherine and Laurent Delaunay own and operate out of their ultra-modern winery, located in the Corbières region. This former wine cooperative in the small winegrowing village of Monze, at the foot of Mount Alaric, was enlarged and completely renovated in 2015 to become a winery devoted to the production of Les Jamelles wines.
Catherine Delaunay and her team of 7 oenologists-winemakers therefore have the most efficient means at their disposal for the crafting of Les Jamelles wines.
State-of-the-art, high-performance equipment
Major investments have made this winery a one-of-a-kind facility in the Languedoc region:
- Production capacity of 50,000 hl, equivalent to 6.7 million bottles.
- Cellar capacity of 800 barrels.
- The grapes are protected from oxidation at each stage of vinification, and gravity is used to handle them. Temperatures are monitored using a high-precision system.
- The equipment is designed to allow for traditional vinification as well as for more precise vinification, including a sorting table and 50-hl wooden tanks and smaller 25-hl stainless steel tanks with temperature control for both. It is therefore possible to experiment with premium vinification techniques for the “Cépage Rare” and “Sélection Parcellaire” micro-cuvées.