Château Grange Cochard
Sarah and James Wilding took over the domaine in 2008. Together with their
children Tom and Ellie the whole family is involved in the production and selling
of Chateau Grange Cochard wines around the world.
In their search for the right property, Sarah and James loved the beauty and
charm of the Beaujolais hills, but most of all they chose Morgon because of the
potential to produce high quality fine red wine. On account of its history, Chateau
Grange Cochard owns some of the finest parcelles of vines in the Morgon
appellation, but due to the illness of the previous owner had fallen into disrepair.
They have invested in new equipment and have reintroduced many of the
traditional processes in the vineyard and the winery, which in recent decades,
due to the cost and time required, have been disappearing. The family is
enthusiastic and passionate about the wines they produce, and continue to strive
for higher and higher quality in order to achieve the very best results.
History
The hamlet of La Grange Cochard is a historic and ancient place. The little lane
outside the Chateau is a Roman road which thousands of years ago was an
important highway from the south up towards Paris. Cargo would be brought up
the rivers Rhone and Saone, taken out and brought along our road over the hills
to find the north-flowing Loire to proceed towards Paris.
In medieval times this lane formed part of a protected route controlled by the
Knights Templar. The Chateau was built on the site of one of the staging posts
owned by that order, and so parts of the cellars are significantly older than the
present house.
Vines have been grown outside the Chateau for centuries and by the 1930s the
vineyard’s wines were gaining nationwide acclaim, and had become regular
medal winners at the Paris Concours.
The Estate
The estate consists of 6 hectares of vines, in the appellation of Morgon, including
1.5 hectares on the renowned old volcano of Côte du Py, all within a few hundred
metres of the chateau. Most of the vines are between 40 and 100 years old.
Their age results in low yields with intense small berries supplying complex
structure, discreet tannins, and dark fruit flavours.
Chateau Grange Cochard is committed to sustainable viticulture, following a
policy of minimum intervention with increased use of natural farming methods to
nourish the soil and maintain a healthy and balanced eco-system. Grass is
planted between rows of vines, which reduces erosion and naturally restricts
weed growth. No insecticides or pesticides are applied and no artificial irrigation
systems are used.
Winemaking
At harvest, the grapes are picked exclusively by hand into small boxes. On
arrival at the Chateau each bunch is checked again manually using a vibrating
triage table to ensure only the best grapes enter the fermentation vats.
Each area of vines is vinified separately, carefully considering its particular needs
and characteristics. Whilst many Morgons are vinified quickly, we favour slower,
cooler fermentations, which allow the true character of the terroir to emerge
gently and calmly. After vinification, our wines are matured in our own vaulted
cellars on site, in large old oak "foudres", new oak barrels, or tanks. Bottling and
labelling is also carried out at the Chateau at the optimal time of maturation of
the wines depending on the wine and the year (normally 9 - 12 months); we
only use natural corks.
The Wines
All the red wines are made from the ‘gamay noir à jus blanc’ grape, which is best
suited to the granite terroir of Morgon. The great majority of the vines are over
40 years old although many have been growing for almost a century.
Morgon Vieilles Vignes
Classic Morgon cuvée, elegant and fresh, full of red fruit flavours with underlying
hints of pepper and silky tannins. This wine is matured in old, 3000 litre oak
foudres, which allow the wine to soften and fully integrate the fruits and tannins.
Morgon Les Charmes
This cuvée is made from some venerable vines in the climat of Les Charmes on
soft pink granite. This lends floral notes to the wine with the mature vines giving
rich fruit concentration in the mouth. It is matured in 3 - 4 year old French oak
barrels and the fruit flavours are supported by subtle hints of vanilla and toast.
Morgon Côte du Py
The flagship wine is from grapes grown on the most renowned terroir of Morgon;
these lie on the slopes of crushed blue granite of the ancient volcano . This land
gives the wine an intense underlying structure with brilliant dark fruit notes and
long length in the mouth. The wine will continue to develop in the cellar for many
years.