Domaine Alain Voge

Ampuis

“The power comes from the terroir. Let’s not add anything more to it“. Alain Voge was a visionary. However, less well known is the fact that he was also a seeker of detail, a meticulous winegrower-gardener for whom winegrowing could not only be “beautiful, but respectful and meaningful“. Albéric Mazoyer, and now Lionel Fraisse, are following in his footsteps. The same Ardèche country pride. The same passionate determination. The same sense of the community, of nature, of balance. But without standing still. Staying true to history doesn’t mean not moving with a changing world. The domaine is proud of this refined classicism. “Getting to know our terroir is a tremendous adventure,” says Lionel, “but to intervene as little as possible, you have to understand as much as you can. The mystery comes later…” It is this mystery that sees the birth, on these hard-to-work hillsides, of wines of great purity, wines made by craftsmen, created not to be admired but deeply loved: Voge wines!

Cellar

8 ha AOC CORNAS (Syrah grape variety), 4 ha AOC SAINT-PÉRAY, (Marsanne grape variety), 1 ha AOC SAINT JOSEPH (Syrah grape variety) + AOC CÔTES DU RHÔNE (Syrah grape variety). Located on some of the finest slopes of the Cornas AOC, the Syrahs are planted in decomposed granite, known locally as “Gore”. The Marsanne vines are among the oldest in the AOC, most of them planted in Saint-Péray’s historic clay-limestone soils. The entire domaine is certified organic and biodynamic.

Wines

Harvested by hand. Most of the Syrah grapes used for the red wines are destemmed. Fermentation is carried out in small temperature-controlled, 30-50 hectolitre stainless steel vats, with daily punching down of the cap and pumping over operations. After 3 weeks in vat, the wine is aged in barrels. This ageing lasts between 9 and 24 months, depending on the ‘power’ and needs of each wine. For the whites, whole grapes are pressed and the alcoholic and malolactic fermentations are carried out in barrels for Fleur de Crussol and Ongrie, followed by 13 to 17 months ageing on the lees. Harmonie is also vinified and aged on the lees, but in concrete tanks for 10 months. Native yeasts and reduced sulphiting on all the wines.

Wines

The separate vinification of the grapes from the different vineyard plots results in several different wines:
CORNAS • Les Chailles: A blend of hillside vines from several lieux-dits, this is the perfect introduction to the domaine and to the Syrah grape grown in Cornas. • CORNAS • Les Vieilles Vignes: Our great classic. The 60-year-old Syrahs in this wine grow in the heart of Cornas on its historic granite hillsides. • CORNAS • Les Vieilles Fontaines: Created by Alain Voge in 1988, on this gorgeous granite terroir, magnified by our oldest Syrahs. Produced only in certain exceptional vintages, Les Vieilles Fontaines illustrates Cornas’ strong personality and the spirit of our work. • CORNAS • Chapelle Saint-Pierre: The very special, vertical and fresh identity of this wine from a high altitude terroir (Saint-Pierre lieu-dit, 400 m), always vinified and aged separately, inspired us to make it a unique and rare single-vineyard wine, only produced when the balances are perfect. •SAINT-PÉRAY • Harmonie: With this blend of different plots, we are striving to express the personality of the Marsanne grape variety as faithfully as possible. • SAINT-PÉRAY • Ongrie: Renamed Ongrie with the 2015 vintage, this wine was created in 1984 and was first named Cuvée Boisée and then Terres Boisées, in reference to its vinification and barrel ageing on the lees pioneered by Alain Voge in Saint-Péray. 100% Marsanne. • SAINT-PÉRAY • Fleur de Crussol: The Crussol massif, from which this wine takes its name, plays an important role in the Saint-Péray AOC because it provides the limestone elements essential for the crafting of great white wines. Our oldest Marsannes (80 years old), fermented in barrels and aged in the same containers for 17 months. • SAINT-PÉRAY • Les Bulles d’Alain (traditional method): With this wine, Domaine Alain Voge perpetuates the tradition of the Saint-Péray “méthode traditionnelle” that has forged the reputation of the Saint-Péray region since the 1830s. • SAINT JOSEPH (red) • Les Côtes: This terroir has very great potential and is gradually coming into its own as the vines age. Average age in 2023: 18 years. • CÔTES DU RHÔNE (red) • Les Peyrouses: We age a wine derived from organic growing methods and fresh terroirs, made primarily from Syrah grapes, in our oldest barrels, for 8 to 10 months.