A little more than one kilometer from the château, in the hamlet known as “l’Ormetrou”, the planting of 14 hectares (35 acres) of organic vines has been underway since June 2015.
A little more than one kilometer from the château, in the hamlet known as “l’Ormetrou”, the planting of 14 hectares (35 acres) of organic vines has been underway since June 2015.
In September 1519, François I ordered the construction of Chambord. During 1518 and 1519, the French monarch arranged for the transport, from Beauce in the Burgundy region to Val de Loire, of 80,000 stems of a grape variety that was subsequently named Romorantin, and which currently subsists on 50 hectares (125 acres) as the Cour-Cheverny appellation.
By 1547, when François I died, all of the smallholdings in Chambord were known to possess their vineyards. And it has been attested that in the 18th century, the château had its own vineyard, covering at least six hectares, and that following its projected expansion, it would have become six times larger. Unfortunately, in the late 19th century, as was the case for other large-scale vineyards in France, it failed to survive a devastating phylloxera epidemic.
In 2015, given its heritage conservation mission and in a spirit of environmental responsibility, the National Estate of Chambord decided to replant the grape varieties of yesteryear: four hectares of Romorantin grapes originating in pre-phylloxera plants and two hectares of Arbois and menu Pineau varieties. Planting of Pinot noir (four hectares) and Gamay (0.7 hectares) grapes has likewise taken place; they are being blended to produce Cheverny and Sauvignon (three hectares) wines.
As regards vinification, Chambord’s chosen partner is Henry Marionnet, a specialist in ancient grape varieties and natural wine, which has been produced in Sologne over several generations.
Following the initial vendanges (September 2018), the first bottles will be on sale in March 2019 as initial exemplars of the “500 years of Chambord” vintage.
On a plot covering 14 hectares (35 acres) of organic grapes, 70,000 bottles will be produced annually, yielding approximately a million euros of net income a year.
So as to ensure vinification under optimal conditions, the noted architect Jean-Michel Wilmotte has been entrusted with construction of a winery, which will be the first architecturally designed winery in the Val de Loire. It will further enhance the value of a magnificent and prestigious wine-growing region. Winery construction will also be associated with the designing, in the farmstead, of accommodations favoring oenotourism. A site dedicated to tasting and sales will be set up in the adjacent barns. In close proximity to the château, abutting the estate’s enclosure wall, the location of l’Ormetrou is nothing short of exceptional.
The winery is legally necessary imperative so that on its property, a wine bearing the name of Chambord can be elaborated. Indeed, the Chambord vineyard project is of essential importance in a strategy of defense and valorization of its intangible heritage.
In point of fact, the exceptional character of Chambord and its dreamlike dimension have served as a source of inspiration not only to artists, but also to numerous companies all over the world that have made use of its name and its image to promote their highly diversified products, more often than not without having received authorization or manifesting any coherent connection with the estate. In this respect, it bears mentioning that the Chambord brand is endowed with a singularly distinctive and widely recognized character due to its venerable age and prestigious history, its national and international reputation and, last but not least, the image of its eponymous monument. Products manufactured from the natural resources of the estate, particularly Chambord oak barrels, are henceforth offered for sale under the “Château de Chambord” label. And as of 2019, the wine produced on the estate will join the exisiting range of products with the double objective of defending the intangible heritage and developing “own resources”.
Use of the trademark and promotion of Chambord wine are likely to generate additional revenues that will contribute to achievement of the objective the estate has set for itself regarding self-financing (100% by 2020), which as of now has reached 90.4% of the funds necessary to the functioning of the establishment.
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Cécile Anger
International sponsorship and
partnership manager
cecile.anger@chambord.org