Spring in the vineyard

Bud break at Château Cazal Viel heralds the real beginning of spring in our vineyards. It's an exciting time for the viticultural team, as they start work on the new vintage and the lifecycle of our vines begins again. It comes about 2 weeks later at Château Auzines than Cazal Viel, thanks to the higher altitude and cool breezes, which gives our viticultural team time to catch their breath!

Our focus now is on maximising soil health and vitality. We follow regenerative agriculture principles, so we only apply natural fertiliser, mixed with the manure from the sheep that roam in the vineyards over the winter months. March has been quite rainy in the Languedoc, which is very helpful to the developing vines at this time of year (maybe not so helpful to tourists!), as the root systems absorb and store water and nutrients. Our rainwater lake is also at a good level at the moment, allowing us to plan for the growing season over the next few months. The vineyards are beautiful as we come into April, with wildflowers appearing and the birds and insects deafening us with song. 

As we look forward to the Easter break, we will be suggesting some great food and wine pairings to share with family and friends. Laurent prizes freshness and elegance in his wines above all, which makes our red wines particularly food-friendly. We'll be drinking our new range of terroir-driven red wines from Languedoc sites in AOP Languedoc, St-Chinian, Corbières and Faugères - Syrah and Grenache based wines from unique terroirs, that marry so well with traditional roast lamb. The Languedoc Blanc blend (Grenache, Rolle, Clairette and Roussanne) will also make an appearance with a starter of Irish smoked salmon.

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