Domaine de la Croix Senaillet     

Domaine de la Croix Senaillet is in Southern Burgundy, in the very heart of the Mâconnais Cru area and close to the famous prehistoric site of Solutré. The name Domaine de la Croix Senaillet is taken from the name of the cross bestowed upon the village of Davayé by one of its past mayors Benoît Senaillet, who donated it to replace one that was destroyed in 1793 during the French Revolution.

His sons, Richard and Stéphane Martin, took over the estate in 1992. Stéphane’s responsibility is the vines - allowing the soils and terroir to come through and resulting in grapes that are of the finest that the Saint-Véran Cru appellation can give. Richard’s approach to vinification is refined year after year. Today his and Stéphane’s style and the alliance of a feel for the earth, is what makes the Domaine de la Croix Senaillet unique.

We do not inherit the earth from our parents; we borrow it from our children” (Léopold Sédar Senghor)

The approach is first and foremost practical: to get the very best fruit to be able to make the very best wines. The brothers protect their vines with a treatment strategy of minimum intervention, resulting in no pollution and maximum respect for the environment. Certified in 2006 by Agriculture Biologique.

Harvesting the grapes at peak ripeness is one of the challenges faced by a vinegrower as this is where the final quality of the wine lies. In addition to tasting, samples are taken and analysed to find out the sugar levels in the grapes. When perfect ripeness is reached, the harvest starts.

As soon as the grapes arrive in the cellar, they are gently tipped on to a conveyor belt, which carried them to the presses. This direct pressing is slow and at low pressure
to get juice (= must) that is as pure as possible and expresses the aromatic finesse
of the Chardonnay grape variety to the full. The must then undergoes a slow alcoholic fermentation at low temperatures for around 4 months. This allows the wine to retain its fruity characteristics. The second malolactic fermentation follows on from this, producing a wine that is less sharp, more rounded and microbiologically stable.

Before bottling, all the wines are matured on their lees for 10 months, giving them creamy suaveness and greater complexity.