Château de Villeneuve

A winegrower for 4 generations in the commune of Dampierre sur Loire, it was in 1969 that Robert Chevallier acquired Château de Villeneuve, a vineyard that has been producing wines since the 16th century. Today, his son Jean-Pierre Chevallier is its guardian. The estate comprises 5 hectares of Chenin Blanc and 23 hectares of Cabernet Franc, two grape varieties from the Loire Valley that Jean-Pierre Chevallier sublimates in his wines. The vineyard, overlooking the Loire, is situated on limestone bedrock from which the tuffeau stone used to build the region's châteaux is extracted. Chenin is used to produce Saumur Blanc, and Cabernet Franc for Saumur Champigny. The vineyards are worked according to organic farming principles, with no use of weedkillers, pesticides or chemical fertilizers. Soil cultivation, limited yields, manual harvesting. Everything is done to give the plant its natural balance and to produce while respecting wild flora and fauna. The 28 hectares surrounding the Chevallier family estate produce complex wines marked by great personality. Château de Villeneuve wines are vinified in cellars dug into the tufa rock, at a constant temperature (12°C). Saumur Champigny and Saumur Blanc are aged in 400 to 500-liter barrels called tons. Since the 15th century, Château de Villeneuve wines have been a favorite among Loire Valley wine lovers.