Jouffreau family has been making Cahors wine at Clos de Gamot for 400
years and has consistently played a notable part in the region's
history. Guillaume Jouffreau was instrumental in rescuing the Clos de
Gamot vines from the brink of destruction by phylloxera in the 1880s,
and his successful grafts to Herbemont rootstock would also help
rebuild much of Cahors.
of the Auxerrois (also known as Malbec) vines planted in 1885 still
grow in part of the 15 ha Clos de Gamot vineyard on a terroir of
siliceous clay, shingle and flint. The yield on these vines is low,
but they continue to produce a few clusters every year of pure
Auxerrois, full of concentrated flavour and powerful varietal
characteristics. The rest of the vines are between 40 and 70 years
old. The land is worked by tilling the soil regularly through the
season without the use of chemical herbicides or pesticides. Vines
are harvested by hand to protect the grapes, and plots are vinified
separately in small volume tanks to preserve the specific
characteristics of each terroir.
The Jouffreau family take pride in their long wine-making history and family knowledge, and follow a philosophy of attentiveness to nature and to each wine as it is made. 'Le bon sens paysan' tells them to allow time for each wine to express itself during the wine-making process. For this reason they choose not to use any new oak barriques or small-volume barrels, to prevent any extraction and concentration in their wines.