Sustainable Agriculture

The Mont Tauch vineyards are situated in one of the most beautiful, unspoilt areas of France.

The Mont Tauch growers are very proud of the land they have inherited from their forefathers and they want to preserve it for future generations.

To protect this exceptional environment, the growers adhere to the principles of sustainable agriculture. Initiated in 2000, Mont Tauch claims the highest percentage of qualified growers of any cooperative in France.

Strict regulations help guarantee effective traceability and restrict the use of chemical treatments. These include annual training for the growers on technical subjects such as knowledge of the soil and biodiversity, knowledge of restriction on chemical products, teaching on farming practices. Mont Tauch also employs several full time technicians to advise individual growers and to inspect the quality of their work. The technicians visit the vineyards from spring right up to the harvest and any information gathered is logged onto a pocket pc, which is attached to a GPS.

Three weather stations have been placed throughout the Mont Tauch vineyards to follow any climactic changes and to help anticipate risks of mildew. Treatments are then only initiated after meticulous observations made on a number of reference vineyards.

Mont Tauch technicians have been experimenting on a model vineyard at Chateau de Montmal, grassing techniques adapted to poor soils and summer droughts. Grassing helps to fight against ground erosion and limits the use of weed killers.

Traceability extends from the vineyard, to the wine making process. Growers have a badge for each vineyard, which holds information on the location, size and grape variety of the vineyard. Thanks to management of the yield of each vineyard and depending on the quality of the grapes harvested, selection of the vineyards with the best potential can take place during the harvest.