The harvest begins with Syrah, the quickest grape to ripen, and then the Grenache in the highest spots. The Mourvèdre is the slowest ripening and usually the last grape to be harvested. The entire harvest is picked by hand, and yields are never more than 35 hl/ha. Among the old vines on the terraces, they generally fall to a maximum of 30 hl/ha. The recently picked grapes are transported quickly to the winery situated off to the side of the vineyards. After being completely de-stemmed, they go into tanks and are lightly crushed. The tanks themselves are made of cement and are temperature-controlled.
The must is cooled and the pre-fermentation period lasts several days in order to extract pigment and primary aromas of the grape. Then the fermentation begins. Only indigenous yeasts are used. Fermentation generally lasts between 10 and 12 days, and the pressing takes place in a bladder press. Aging occurs in enamel-lined tanks in the temperature-controlled winery. The vats themselves are completely underground so they naturally remain cool. Grenache is aged for 3 years. 30% Syrah & Mourvèdre wines are aged in new oak barrels. Blending is done before bottling.
Malolactic fermentation normally takes place by the end of the year. The wine is then racked 4 or 5 times before bottling. The addition of sulfur is kept to a minimum and filtration is extremely light.