Our philosophy
From his 15 years as head of culture at the mythical Abbaye de Lérins, not far from there on the island of Saint-Honorat, Alain Vallès has retained the essential: a love of rare and confidential wines, an appetite for unique lands and a certain taste for silence.
In 2014, he embarked on the “belletane” adventure and discovered with emotion a magical terroir and its potential for exceptional wines.
Heterogeneity of the terroir, steep slopes, draining soils, delicious and demanding grape varieties.
These are all elements that Alain perceives as riches that the winegrowers must make the most of.
Working in Bellet is a constant challenge, which this optimistic self-taught man takes up with great pleasure and humility.
For Alain, the work in the vineyard and the respect for the vines are essential if we want to obtain a beautiful wine. In 2014, he accompanied the conversion of the vineyard to organic farming. The objective of this change was to obtain more lively, healthier, well-structured soils and thus a more resistant vineyard able to cope with climatic hazards.
In the specifications of the AB label, there are numerous actions aimed at improving the behaviour of the vines (leaf removal for example) but also actions concerning the maintenance of the soil and the maintenance of biological life in the vineyard (grassing if necessary).
This type of soil maintenance requires constant effort…work that requires patience, resilience and high standards. The winegrower often spends several hours on a single plot.
A quality wine
From a gustatory point of view, organic farming also allows for a better definition of flavours in the wine. An organic wine expresses a more savoury, more digestible maturity. A good raw material is necessary to obtain a quality wine.
We work with a material that is more concentrated in sugar, of better quality with more homogeneous ripeness and the collection and transport are done in a respectful way because the berries are never damaged.