 Louis Chèze comes from a long line of wine growers, and inherited his property from his father, one of the founders of the local co-operative. When Louis met the famous Condrieu winemaker, Georges Vernay, he was inspired to to strike out on his own, believing that his steep, terraced vineyards had potential for much more than inexpensive, co-op bottlings. This was a nearly revolutionary act in this part of France where the wines were never considered "worthy" of the respect accorded "finer" Rhône locations. Since 1983, Louis has grown, produced and bottled his entire production, and has mapped out and transformed his vineyards, replanting where necessary, and even reclaiming old sites that were abandoned as too risky (some of the terraced vineyards overlooking the Rhône can be very dangerous to work), or too expensive to farm. |
