Chateau Malherbe

Chateau Malherbe

Provence, France

At a Glance

• Malherbe is 60 hetacre property (28 hectares under vine) located in a national park in Provences's Bormes les Mimosas. The estate was the historic farm of the Fort de Brégançon. Agriculture has been practiced here for over 2000 years.

• Malherbe has been farming organically since 1940 and today farms Biodynamically (with a demeter certification in 2021). The vineyards, some of which are 80 years old, have never been treated with chemicals. The estate believes strongly in polyculture with a vegetable garden and orchard planted between their vineyards.

• The vines and wines are managed with the assistance of Philippe Pacalet, a pioneer of natural wine in Burgundy.

• Both the Malherbe red and white come from specific parcels in their Cap Bénat Terroir. The area's red clay and schist/shale based soils results in complexity and an overt mineral quality in the wines.

• The Wines:
Chateau Malherbe Blanc, 2021 – A blend of 60% Rolle (Vermentino) and 40% Semillon. This is the star of the show, a genuinely unusual and delicious Provence white, with the Semillon adding texture and depth to the freshness and energy of the Vermentino. Aged in a combination of large oak vats, concrete eggs, and stainless steel.

Chateau Malherbe Rouge, 2022 – A blend of Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre, from vineyards as old as 80 years. Not at all what one might expect from Provence, this feels incredibly light on its feet, due to the Pacalet stamp of whole cluster and whole berry fermentation. Red fruited, floral and spicy but very fresh. Aged in 600L and 2500L oak tanks.

About Chateau Malherbe

Close your eyes and picture vineyards in the Cote de Provence. Whatever you may have arrived at, it very likely resembles the idyll that is Chateau Malherbe, tucked between the wooded foothills of Cap Benat in the Port-Cros national park and the blue of the Mediterranean. From this not-to-be-believed little corner of paradise come some of the most pristinely farmed and individual wines in Provence.

Originally from Lyon, Louis Ferrari (no relation) purchased Chateau Malherbe in 1940 and his grandson Serge planted vineyards in 1960 to begin producing wine. From the outset, the vines were farmed entirely without herbicides or pesticides or indeed any synthetic products. Serge’s wife Mireille Ferrari strove from the outset to treat her vines with the utmost care and respect, since this was the only way to ensure that the property would survive through generations.

Today her grandson Sebastian leads the estate, the fourth generation to tend to the property, and he has expanded on Mireille’s philosophy, achieving Demeter certification of biodynamics in 2021. Cover crops of rye and flowers are planted every year to ensure water retention and cool the soil in an area often beset by drought in the modern age. They have succeeded by engaging Jannick Utard (formerly of the estimable Domaine de la Navicelle) and Burgundy’s natural wine pioneer Philippe Pacalet. Under their guidance, the estate’s vines and wines have reached new heights.