Les Couversets, Plan de Dieu

The name Les Couverset is that of a very ancient bourgeois family from Châteauneuf-du-Pape. The last descendant of this family to bear the name was Suzanne (a distant ancestor of the Quiot Family). The lands were passed down from generation to generation and are now fully integrated into the Quiot Family Vineyards.

In the Middle Ages, crossing this vast garrigue forest, vulnerable to bandits, was an endeavor that required entrusting one’s soul to God. It is likely from this legend that the name “Plan de Dieu” (Plan of God) originated. Since then, the vine has colonized this territory, now extending across 1,500 hectares at an altitude of 110 meters.

The few remaining woods are scattered within this vineyard, nestled on a bed of red clay and a multitude of large rolled pebbles that penetrate the soil up to ten meters deep. Due to this considerable thickness, the soil is skeletal and produces sparingly: hardly more than one bottle per vine! On this terroir, the combination yields brilliant and colorful wines, dense and concentrated. Their aroma evokes the surrounding garrigue: thyme, laurel, and underbrush.

In terms of appellation, this fairly uniform terroir corresponds to the extensive alluvial terrace formed by the Aigues and Ouvèze rivers during the Riss period 200,000 to 300,000 years ago. It is topped with limestone gravel dating back to the Quaternary Era. These gravels rest either on blue clay from the Pliocene or on sandy safres, ensuring moisture retention that relatively preserves vine growth during summer droughts. On the estate, the terroir is a vast alluvial terrace rich in pebbles.

Total Destemming. Vatting: 3 weeks. Aging in concrete vats.