After ten years at the direction of Gault & Millau, Patricia Alexandre food and wine journalist, decided to convert from “wine writing” to “wine making”. Her desire was to bring forward the quality of the terroir, with the greatest respect for nature, and allow its perfect expression through a production of generous and expressive wines. Together with Georges Antoun, president of the New Hotel Group, they took over 20 hectares of vines in the AOP Ventoux, AOP Luberon and IGP Méditérranée appellations.
Situated in the heart of Provence, in the Luberon Natural Park, a UNESCO biosphere reserve, the Peyre estate is also a wine tourism venue. With its 35 hectares of woodland and vineyards surrounding its 18th century fortified farmhouse and its fully renovated 9th century chapel, the Peyre estate offers something truly unique.
The Estate
When the couple took over this property in 2012, they immediately invested in its renovation, favouring local craftsmen in creating a wine cellar to produce a wine that highlights their terroir, renovating the chapel, installing works of art, restructuring the vineyard, renovating the buildings, and uprooting and planting new plots. It is with the approach of sustainable viticulture, protecting the fauna, preserving biodiversity, respecting the natural balance between the wooded areas and the vineyard plots, (grassing between the rows of vines, planting trees of different species, absence of herbicides, use of organic fertilizers), that they have obtained the HVE CERTIFICATION (High Environmental Value).
They are going even further on the carbon footprint with very light bottles, the use of “eco-responsible” paper for their labels, and corks that have a negative carbon footprint. As of the 2022 vintage they have also started the conversion to 100% organic farming, and they will be fully certified by the 2025 vintage.
On edge of the via Domitia (the oldest road built in France), the farm, once called a “bastide” and now called an “estate”, has always been an important place in the life of the region. The presence of the Chapel of Saint Peyre on the estate, coins, statuettes, and dolia found during the work on the soil, bear witness to this, “When we bought this estate, we had to do everything we could to restore this site to its former glory, a true heritage of the Luberon,” explain Patricia Alexandre and Georges Antoun. Archaeological excavations, thanks to the research work carried out by Patrick de Michèle’s team (SADV archaeologist), have revealed the progressive construction of the estate on the remains of a Roman villa.
The Wines
The wines of the Domaine des Peyre are truly pleasurable wines, full of fruit, finesse and freshness, made from a beautiful terroir and worked with the utmost respect for nature and the identity of the land. Wines that you want to share, wines that smell of the south of France. Wines that are easy to drink, well rooted in tradition but made with modern production tools that allow them to control the organoleptic quality of the wines. The winery has been awarded the “three vine leaves” label for its respect of the quality charter “Vallée du Rhône, Terroirs d’accueil”! The maximum distinction!
